FROM  MIDSHIPMAN 
TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 


Photo.  I.  M    Steinberg, 


FROM  MIDSHIPMAN 
TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 


BY 
REAR-ADMIRAL  BRADLEY  A.  FISKE 

U.  S.  NAVY 

Former  Aid  for  Operations  of  the  Fleet,  President  of  the  U.  S.  Naval 

Institute,  Gold  Medalist  of  the  U.  S.  Naval  Institute. 

the  Franklin  Institute  of  Pennsylvania,  and 

the  Aero  Club  of  America. 

Author  of  "Electricity  in  Theory  and  Practice,"  "War  Time  in 

Manila."  "The  Navy  as  a  Fighting  Machine,"  etc. 

Inventor  of  the  Gun  Director  System,  the  Naval  Telescope  Sight,  the 

Studimeter,  the  Turret  Range  Finder,  the  Horizometer. 

the  Torpedoplane,  etc..  etc..  etc. 


ILLUSTRATED  WITH 
PHOTOGRAPHS 


NEW  YORK 
THE  CENTURY  CO. 
1919 


Copyright,  1919,  by 
THE  CENTURY  Co. 

Published,  September,  1919 


TO 

THE  MEMORY  OF 

REAR-ADMIRAL  STEPHEN  B.  LUCE 

U.  S.  NAVY 

WHO  SAW  THE  LIGHT  BEFORE  OTHERS  SAW  IT, 
AND  LED  THE  NAVIES  TOWARD  IT 


405747 


PREFACE 

No  other  vocation  gives  a  man  such  exciting  and  varied 
experiences  as  the  navy.  These  experiences  are  caused 
mainly  by  the  continual  recurrence  of  danger  in  many 
forms;  the  frequent  changes  of  locality,  scene,  climate 
and  companions;  the  blending  of  the  military  with  the 
nautical  career;  the  combination  of  diplomatic  and  war 
like  responsibilities ;  the  handling  of  engines  and  mechan 
isms  of  all  kinds;  the  conduct  of  tactical  and  strategic 
operations ;  and  the  continuous  battle  against  the  political 
influences  that  sap  the  strength  of  the  nation. 

During  the  last  forty-nine  years  navies  have  increased 
more  than  a  hundredfold  in  power ;  that  is,  in  the  amount 
of  destructive  power  they  can  exert.  This  has  been  ac 
complished  by  utilizing  the  mechanical  power  of  steam, 
electricity,  gunpowder,  and  explosives,  and  by  inventing 
instruments  and  methods  with  which  to  direct  the  me 
chanical  power  accurately  at  its  objective. 

During  all  the  time  in  which  this  increase  in  naval 
power  was  being  accomplished  I  had  the  good  fortune 
not  only  to  be  a  close  observer,  but  to  contribute  some 
essential  parts.  In  fact,  it  has  often  been  said  to  me 
that  I  did  more  to  increase  the  power  of  navies  than  any 
other  one  man. 

I  realize  that  I  am  exposing  myself  to  the  charge  of 
insubordination  by  relating  certain  incidents  that  oc 
curred  while  I  was  aid  for  operations  and  afterwards. 
But  the  Secretary's  official  statements  about  me  before 
the  House  Naval  Committee  on  April  3,  1916,  and  espe 
cially  his  statement,  "If  the  law  had  not  .  .  .  provided 
a  chief  of  operations  instead  of  an  aid  for  operations, 


vn 


viii  PREFACE 

I  should  have  asked  him  (me)  to  retire,  (as  aid  for  oper 
ations)  because  he  (I)  was  not  in  harmony  with  the 
Department,"  added  to  the  fact  that  after  I  had  so  re 
tired  and  throughout  the  war,  the  handling  of  the  navy 
was  satisfactory  to  the  country,  have  caused  an  im 
pression  more  or  less  widespread  that  I  had  been  an 
obstruction  to  progress.  Navy  officers  know  that  this  is 
the  exact  reverse  of  the  truth,  and  that  I  was  ''not  in 
harmony  with  the  Department,"  because  I  continually 
urged  certain  measures  of  preparedness.  They  also 
know  that  these  measures  were  afterwards  adopted,  and 
that  it  was  because  they  were  adopted  that  the  navy  was 
well  prepared  for  the  war  and  well  handled  during  the 
war. 

I  owe  it  to  myself,  to  my  family,  and  to  the  navy  to  state 
the  exact  facts  of  the  case,  and  with  such  fullness  as  the 
small  limits  of  a  book  permit.  This  I  do. 

BEADLEY  A.  FISKE. 

New  York,  August  1,  1919. 


CONTENTS 


I    BOYHOOD       ...........       3 

II    THE  NAVAL  ACADEMY 8 

III  THE  MIDSHIPMAN  CRUISE — KALAKAUA  AND  THE 

SANDWICH  ISLANDS 20 

IV  EXAMINATION,  TYPE- WRITER  AND  BOAT  DETACH 

ING  APPARATUS 37 

V    N.  Y.  NAVY- YARD,  COLORADO,  ELECTRIC  LOG  AND 

POWHATAN 46 

VI     LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA,  MARRIAGE     60 
VII    BUREAU  OF  ORDNANCE  AND  FRANKLIN  INSTI 
TUTE  ELEC.  EXPOSITION 78 

VIII     CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA 96 

IX    THE  VESUVIUS,  MY  RANGE-FINDER  AND  GUN- 
DIRECTOR  Ill 

X    LONDON,  PARIS  AND  LE  FORMIDABLE  ....  133 
XI     SPEZZIA,  IL  TERRIBILE,  AND  CAP  BRUN    .      .      .   145 
XII    CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC  OCEANS 

AND  THE  BERING  SEA 161 

XIII  CRUISING   IN   THE    SAN   FRANCISCO.    WAR   IN 

BRAZIL 186 

XIV  ELECTRIC  TURRET-TURNING  MECHANISM,  STAD- 

IMETER  AND   OTHER  INVENTIONS       ....    198 

XV  ON  THE  CHINA  STATION 223 

XVI  THE  BATTLE  OF  MANILA    . 241 

XVII  AFTER  THE  BATTLE 257 

XVIII  THE  CAPTURE  OF  MANILA  CITY 275 

XIX  HONG-KONG,  TAKU,  SHANGHAI,  AND  A  GALE  OF 

WIND 283 

XX  OUTBREAK  OF  THE  FILIPINO  WAR     ....   293 

XXI  ADVENTURES  IN  A  MONITOR 306 

XXII  ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN 317 

XXIII  SHORE  DUTY,  TORPEDOES,  SEMAPHORE  AND  TEL 

ESCOPE-MOUNT     339 

XXIV  EXECUTIVE  OFFICER  OF  A  BATTLE-SHIP    .     .     .  348 
XXV    TURRET  RANGE-FINDER,  FOUR-ARM  SEMAPHORE 

AND  PRIZE  ESSAY  .  358 


x  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXVI     COMMANDING  THE  MINNEAPOLIS 379 

XXVII     COMMANDING  A  MONITOR 396 

XXVIII    TURRET  RANGE-FINDER,  HORIZOMETER,  "COUR 
AGE,  AND  PRUDENCE" 406 

XXIX    THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE — FIRST  YEAR     .     .      .  417 
XXX    THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE — SECOND  YEAR  .     .     .  443 
XXXI    THE  GENERAL  BOARD,  AERONAUTICS,  AND  "NA 
VAL  POWER" 476 

XXXII     COMMANDING  THE  FIFTH  DIVISION     ....  493 

XXXIII  COMMANDING  THE  THIRD  AND  THE  FIRST  DI 

VISION.    END  OP  SEA  CAREER 507 

XXXIV  AID  FOR  OPERATIONS,  AERONAUTICS  AND  OUT 

BREAK  OF  WAR 526 

XXXV    THE  UNPREPAREDNESS  OF  THE  NAVY     .      .      .   546 
XXXVI    TESTIMONY   BEFORE   CONGRESS   AND   CHIEF   OF 

NAVAL  OPERATIONS 561 

XXXVII    WAR  GAME,   THE  ADMINISTRATIVE  PLAN,  AND 

MY  RESIGNATION 572 

XXXVIII    ' '  THE  MASTERY  OF  THE  WORLD,  "  "  NAVAL  PRE 
PAREDNESS"  AND  MY  REPRIMAND  ....  590 
XXXIX    MY  SECOND  TESTIMONY  AND  THE  SECRETARY'S 

ATTACK  ON  ME 598 

XL    UNPREPAREDNESS  LETTER,  LETTER  OF  PRESIDENT, 

AND  RETIREMENT 610 

XLI    WAR  CLOSE  AT  HAND 620 

XLII    THE  UNITED  STATES  DECLARES  WAR  AGAINST 

GERMANY        632 

XLIII    AERONAUTICS  IN  WAR 642 

XLIV    REJECTION    OF    THE    TORPEDOPLANE    WITHOUT 

TRIAL 660 

XLV    THE  TRIUMPH  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE,  FUTURE 

GLORY  OF  AMERICA,  GOLD  MEDAL  ....  677 
INDEX  .  689 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Bradley  A.  Fiske Frontispiece 

J  FACI.VC; 

PAGE 

U.  S.  S.  Saratoga 64 

Rear-Admiral  S.  B.  Luce 104 

Rear-Admiral  A.  T.  Mahan 108 

Gun  practice  on  board  a  man-o  '-war  before  the  introduction 

of  the  telescope  sight 176 

Battle  of  Manila 248 

U.  S.  S.  Minneapolis 380 

U.  S.  S.  Arkansas 40° 

Admiral  George  Dewey 480 

U.  S.  S.  Florida 52° 

Lieutenant-Commander  W.  P.  Cronan 556 

Captain  Zachariah  H.  Madison 564 

Land  Battleship 596 

A  torpedo  being  launched  from  a  torpedoplane    ....  680 


FROM  MIDSHIPMAN 
TO    REAR-ADMIRAL 


FROM  MIDSHIPMAN 
TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 


CHAPTER  I 

BOYHOOD 

I  WAS  born  in  Lyons,  New  York,  on  June  13, 1854.  My 
father  was  the  Rev.  William  Allen  Fiske  of  the  Epis 
copal  Church.  He  was  a  very  handsome  man,  a  fact 
which  the  ladies  of  his  congregations  never  permitted  him 
to  forget.  He  was  vain  of  his  handsomeness,  but  I  think 
that  was  the  only  fault  his  magnanimous  soul  possessed. 
The  main  object  of  his  life  was  to  do  something  for  some 
one  else,  especially  for  some  one  who  was  poor  or  sick. 
He  was  much  interested  in  my  progress  through  the  navy; 
but  his  interest  was  not  so  much  in  my  promotion  or  in 
my  getting  assignments  to  pleasant  stations,  as  in  my 
conduct  and  in  the  way  in  which  I  was  regarded  by  my 
brother-officers. 

My  mother  was  the  daughter  of  Colonel  John  Bradley, 
who  had  resigned  from  the  army  when  he  was  a  captain, 
and  who  became  later  a  colonel  on  the  staff  of  the  Gov 
ernor  of  New  York.  She  was  a  woman  of  great  force  of 
character,  and  she  always  had  extraordinary  influence 
over  me.  From  the  time  when  I  began  to  go  to  school 
until  she  died  the  mainspring  of  all  my  ambitions  was  to 
please  her.  As  a  boy  I  took  the  greatest  pleasure  in  her 
companionship,  and  we  always  read  books  together. 
During  all  the  periods  when  I  was  separated  from  her  I 
wrote  to  her  every  Sunday.  At  the  end  of  May  1,  1898, 
after  the  Battle  of  Manila,  I  remembered,  just  as  I  was 
going  to  turn  in,  that  it  was  Sunday,  and  I  had  not  writ 
ten  to  her,  So  I  sat  down  at  once  and  wrote  to  her. 

3 


TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 


The  first  thing  I  remember  clearly  is  being  in  a  train 
that  was  going  somewhere.  I  seem  to  have  been  going 
somewhere  during  a  great  part  of  my  life  ever  since. 
On  the  first  occasion  that  I  remember  I  was  going  with 
my  father  and  mother  and  little  sister  from  Lyons  to 
Cleveland,  Ohio.  My  father  had  been  called  to  the  rec 
torship  of  Grace  Church,  Cleveland. 

We  lived  in  Cleveland  from  January,  1860,  to  January, 
1866,  and  I  have  always  remembered  Cleveland  with  the 
greatest  pleasure.  It  was  called  the  Forest  City,  and 
the  people  declared  it  the  most  beautiful  city  in  the  United 
States.  This  was  before  the  prosperity  of  Cleveland 
set  in,  and  covered  the  city  with  smoke  and  dirt.  Euclid 
Avenue  was  especially  beautiful.  One  side  of  the  avenue 
was  lined  with  magnificent  residences,  and  the  other  with 
residences  of  the  plainer  kind.  One  side  was  called  the 
"  nabob  side,"  and  the  other  side  was  called  the  ''bob 
side."  We  lived  on  the  bob  side. 

During  the  first  year  that  we  were  in  Cleveland  I 
went  to  a  private  school,  which  was  a  sort  of  a  military 
school,  in  which  the  boys  were  organized  into  a  com 
pany,  wore  a  uniform,  and  were  called  the  Anderson 
Cadets.  I  was  the  smallest  boy  in  the  company,  and 
carried  a  wooden  gun.  The  other  boys  carried  real  guns. 
The  head  of  the  school,  Mr.  Stevenson,  was  an  English 
man,  and  so  he  tried  to  teach  us  foot-ball.  I  took  part 
in  one  game.  As  I  recollect  it,  my  participation  in 
the  game  lasted  about  a  minute.  I  do  not  remember 
anything  after  this,  until  I  was  picked  up  from  the 
ground  and  led  off  the  field,  crying.  The  ball  had  struck 
me  in  the  face,  and  knocked  me  down  so  hard  that  my 
head  struck  the  ground  before  any  other  part  of  me  did. 

Mr.  Stevenson's  wife  was  a  German,  and  was  his  as 
sistant  in  his  school.  She  was  an  excellent  teacher  so 
far  as  thoroughness  and  knowledge  were  concerned  ;  and 
though  her  methods  were  far  from  gentle,  and  all  the 
boys  were  afraid  of  her,  we  had  a  good  deal  of  respect 
for  her.  One  evening  when  she  and  Mr.  Stevenson  were 


BOYHOOD  5 

calling  on  the  minister  and  his  wife,  and  we  were  sitting 
in  my  father's  study,  I  tried  to  open  a  drawer  in  his  desk 
by  means  of  my  little  finger  inserted  in  the  keyhole,  but 
gave  up  the  attempt.  Seeing  this,  Mrs.  Stevenson  ex 
claimed  : 

1  'Why  did  you  pull  out  your  finger  without  doing 
what  you  started  to  do?" 

1  'It  hurt,"  I  said. 

"What  if  it  did  hurt?"  she  exclaimed.  "You  'II  never 
amount  to  anything  if  you  are  afraid  to  do  things  that 
hurt."  I  think  she  was  right. 

My  mother's  brother  was  a  midshipman  at  the  Naval 
Academy  at  Annapolis  when  we  went  to  Cleveland. 
Shortly  afterward  he  visited  us,  and  I  was  so  carried 
away  with  the  splendor  of  his  uniform  and  the  stories 
he  told  me  about  his  naval  life  that  I  determined  to  be 
a  naval  officer  and  to  prepare  myself  for  the  Naval 
Academy.  This  was  a  fortunate  thing  for  my  parents, 
because  it  made  it  easy  for  them  to  get  me  to  do  anything, 
or  not  to  do  anything,  as  they  might  wish.  If  I  did  not 
learn  my  lessons  well,  they  would  say  I  would  never  get 
into  the  Naval  Academy;  if  I  showed  a  tendency  to  be 
babyish  or  lazy,  they  would  say  I  would  never  make  a 
good  naval  officer,  etc. 

Not  very  long  after  my  uncle 's  visit  I  remember  being 
in  a  carriage  with  my  mother  and  another  lady,  and  that 
they  both  began  to  cry  after  some  man  had  looked  into 
the  carriage-window  and  told  them  something.  I  did  not 
understand  what  it  was  at  the  time,  but  I  found  out  later 
that  what  he  told  them  was  that  Fort  Sumter  had  been 
fired  on.  They  knew,  of  course,  that  this  meant  war  be 
tween  the  North  and  the  South.  About  a  year  after  this 
I  remember  a  telegram  being  handed  to  my  mother  from 
her  father,  which  read, '  *  Our  brave  John  fell  while  nobly 
performing  his  duty. ' '  He  was  killed  on  board  the  U.  S. 
Ship  Richmond  while  passing  the  forts  below  New 
Orleans.  He  was  aid  to  Captain  Alden,  and  was  stand 
ing  on  the  bridge  with  his  hand  to  his  cap  in  military 


6      FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

salute,  when  he  was  struck  with  a  bullet  in  the  forehead. 
My  mother  was  never  quite  the  same  afterward. 

My  father  was  called  to  the  rectorship  of  St.  Paul's 
Church,  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  in  the  latter  part  of  1865,  and 
we  went  there  in  the  early  part  of  1866.  Cincinnati  in 
those  days  was  very  much  larger  than  Cleveland,  but  it 
was  not  nearly  so  pleasant  a  place  for  a  boy  to  live  in. 
It  was  too  large  for  boys'  games,  because  there  were  so 
many  people  in  the  streets ;  playing  ball  and  shinny  was 
very  difficult,  and  so  was  snowballing  in  the  winter  time. 

The  last  three  years  of  my  life  in  Cincinnati  I  spent 
at  Hughes  High  School;  I  believe  that  during  the  last 
year  Mr.  Taft  was  at  Woodward  High  School.  These 
two  high  schools  were  great  rivals,  each  one  considering 
itself  better  than  the  other. 

I  remember  one  day  at  dinner  that  my  father  said  that 
a  friend  of  his  had  made  an  invention.  In  reply  to  a 
question  of  mine,  he  explained  what  an  invention  was. 
It  seemed  to  me  a  very  splendid  thing,  and  so  after  din 
ner  I  sat  by  the  window  in  the  parlor  and  tried  to  invent 
something.  But  after  trying  for  about  half  an  hour,  I 
gave  up  the  attempt,  because  I  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  everything  had  been  invented  already. 

Sometime  after  this,  while  I  was  supposed  to  be  listen 
ing  to  one  of  my  father's  sermons,  but  was  really  think 
ing  about  Robinson  Crusoe's  difficulties  in  getting  fresh 
water,  an  idea  occurred  to  me  with  startling  force,  that 
if  he  had  boiled  some  salt  water  and  let  the  steam  rise  up 
under  an  inverted  tin  cone,  which  had  a  gutter  turned  up 
on  the  inside,  around  the  bottom,  the  steam  would  have 
condensed  on  the  tin  and  run  down  as  water  into  the 
gutter,  and  Eobinson  Crusoe  could  have  drawn  it  off 
later.  I  could  not  get  rid  of  the  idea  for  a  long  while ;  I 
made  pictures  of  it,  and  talked  to  people  about  it,  but 
it  finally  faded  out  of  my  mind.  Of  course  my  idea  was 
in  substance  the  same  as  that  of  all  modern  methods  of 
evaporating  salt  water.  One  thing  that  drove  it  out  of 
my  mind  was  another  idea,  which  was  for  improving 


BOYHOOD  7 

sleeve-buttons.  The  sleeve-buttons  I  wore  were  so  made 
that  to  put  them  into  my  cuffs,  or  take  them  out,  was 
difficult;  and  I  got  up  a  sleeve-button  which  was  in  two 
pieces,  one  put  in  at  the  top  of  the  buttonholes  and  the 
other  at  the  bottom,  and  the  two  parts  then  clamped 
together.  The  so-called  "  separable  sleeve-button," 
which  was  the  same  thing,  came  out  about  ten  years 
afterward,  and  had  a  great  vogue  during  many  years. 

During  all  the  years  in  Cleveland  and  Cincinnati  that 
followed  my  uncle 's  visit  I  kept  the  Naval  Academy  con 
stantly  before  my  eyes.  But  as  the  time  approached  at 
which,  if  at  all,  I  could  get  an  appointment,  the  difficul 
ties  of  securing  an  appointment  became  gradually  so 
clear  as  to  indicate  that  I  probably  could  not  get  one. 
The  only  two  alternatives  I  considered  were  the  ministry 
and  the  law,  with  a  slight  inclination  toward  the  law,  but 
a  feeling  that  in  the  end  I  would  probably  go  into  the 
ministry.  However,  through  his  friend,  the  Hon.  George 
H.  Pendleton,  who  was  a  vestryman  in  his  church,  my 
father  secured  from  the  Hon.  P.  W.  Strader  a  promise 
that,  in  case  he  got  elected,  I  should  receive  the  appoint 
ment.  Strader  was  declared  elected,  but  the  election 
was  disputed.  When  the  time  came  to  make  the  appoint 
ment,  the  election  had  not  been  decided,  but  Strader  gave 
me  the  appointment,  nevertheless.  So  I  went  to  An 
napolis  with  my  mother,  and  presented  myself  for  ex 
amination. 

I  had  little  doubt  that  I  could  pass  the  mental  exam 
ination,  but  I  did  not  believe  that  I  could  pass  the  physi 
cal,  and  neither  did  my  mother.  I  had  always  been  a 
delicate  child,  and  I  had  tried  to  increase  my  strength 
by  gymnasium  exercises.  I  overexerted  myself  at  these, 
and  the  family  doctor,  who  afterward  became  the  highly 
distinguished  Dr.  Barthalow,  told  my  parents  that  I  must 
stop  them,  and  that  I  had  already  injured  my  heart. 
The  navy  doctors  examined  me  carefully,  however,  and  to 
my  intense  joy  passed  me. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE   NAVAL   ACADEMY 

I  TOOK  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  United  States  and 
entered  the  Naval  Academy  as  a  cadet  midshipman 
in  the  afternoon  of  September  24,  1870.  That  night  I 
slept  in  my  room  on  the  fourth  floor  of  what  was  called 
the  "New  Building."  I  had  always  been  a  timid  boy, 
especially  in  the  dark,  and  I  remember  the  feeling  of 
gratification  that  I  had  when,  after  turning  out  the  light  in 
my  room,  I  saw  a  very  pleasant  illumination  coming  in 
from  the  hall  outside  through  the  glass  transom  over  the 
door. 

One  hundred  and  sixteen  boys  entered  in  the  class,  and 
these  boys  ceased  to  be  boys  immediately  after  they  en 
tered.  It  was  part  of  the  discipline  of  the  Naval  Acad 
emy  to  impress  the  cadet  midshipmen  with  the  idea  that 
they  were  no  longer  irresponsible  boys,  but  had  become 
responsible  men,  and  officers  of  the  Government.  Each 
one  was  called  "Mister,"  and  was  encouraged  to  feel  that 
it  devolved  upon  him  to  be  honorable,  straightforward, 
and  courageous.  Lying  was  considered  the  worse  sin, 
with  the  possible  exception  of  cowardice.  The  discipline 
was  exceedingly  strict,  being  identical  with  that  of  West 
Point  except  in  so  far  as  it  was  modified  by  requirements 
that  were  purely  naval ;  but  it  was  just ;  and,  in  a  meas 
ure,  kindly. 

Each  cadet  midshipman  lived  with  a  room-mate  in  a 
comfortable  room,  which  they  were  required  to  keep  in 
order,  though  not  to  scrub.  The  two  occupants  of  a  room 
took  turns  in  being  superintendent  of  the  room  and  hav 
ing  the  responsibility  for  its  cleanliness.  Each  man 
made  his  own  bed,  but  the  superintendent  of  the  room 
swept  out  the  room. 

s 


THE  NAVAL  ACADEMY  9 

The  members  of  the  class  were  divided  into  "sections," 
about  twelve  in  a  section.  During  the  first  month  they 
were  arranged  alphabetically,  but  after  that  they  were 
arranged  for  each  study  according  to  their  proficiency  in 
that  study  the  month  before.  At  the  end  of  the  first 
month  the  standings  of  all  the  cadet  midshipmen  in  the 
various  studies  were  published  on  the  bulletin-board.  As 
no  member  of  the  fourth  class  (usually  called  the  "plebe" 
class)  really  believed  that  he  would  be  able  to  pass  the 
examinations,  but  realized  that  he  might,  the  intense  in 
terest  with  which  we  flocked  to  the  bulletin-board,  to  see 
how  we  stood  may  easily  be  imagined.  The  first  arrange 
ment  I  looked  at  was  that  under  grammar.  I  went  up 
and  down  the  list  of  the  class,  but  to  my  horror,  I  could 
not  find  my  name.  Finally,  when  I  was  almost  in  despair, 
I  found  my  name  actually  at  the  top !  My  relief  was  in 
expressible,  especially  as  I  saw  my  name  near  the  top 
of  all  the  lists  that  showed  the  relative  standings  in  the 
other  studies. 

Shortly  after  this,  while  we  were  at  supper  formation 
(that  is,  in  the  formation  in  which  all  midshipmen  were 
placed  and  mustered  before  supper),  there  was  a  little 
crowding  as  we  turned  "left  face"  into  line.  The  mid 
shipman  on  my  right  stepped  on  my  foot.  I  said,  "Get 
off  my  foot,"  and  he  said,  "You  're  a  liar."  This  was 
an  insult  of  so  grave  a  character  that  I  at  once  challenged 
him  to  fight.  The  challenge  was  accepted,  and  on  the 
following  day  we  selected  our  seconds  and  agreed  upon  a 
referee;  in  the  evening  we  had  a  fight.  He  was  some 
what  bigger  and  heavier  than  I  was;  so  that  after  the 
fight  had  been  going  on  about  twenty  minutes,  I  was  de 
lighted  when  the  superintendent  of  the  floor  broke  into 
the  room  and  stopped  the  fight.  This  fight  was  the  be 
ginning  of  a  long  friendship  between  Dorn  and  me,  which 
has  lasted  to  the  present  day.  I  was  his  "best  man" 
when  he  was  married,  and  he  has  given  me  many  proofs 
during  many  years  of  his  friendship  and  affection. 
In  those  days  hazing  of  plebes  was  an  institution  liber- 


10    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

ally  patronized.  The  hazing  was  done  by  the  third  class, 
the  class  immediately  above ;  but  it  had  the  approval  of 
the  entire  academy  and  the  not  very  great  opposition  of 
the  officers,  although  the  latter  tried  to  prevent  acts  of  a 
cruel  or  insulting  character.  As  Jim  Fiske 's  name  was 
known  by  everybody  in  the  United  States  at  that  time,  I 
was  immediately  labeled  "Jim  Fiske."  The  name  has 
stuck  to  me  among  my  classmates  and  naval  friends  ever 
since.  The  different  members  of  the  class  were  hazed  in 
different  ways.  For  some  reason  I  got  off  very  easily; 
all  I  had  to  do  was  to  strike  an  attitude  and  assume  an 
expression  of  face  supposed  to  be  that  of  an  idiot. 
Whenever  a  third  classman  met  me  he  would  say,  "  Jim 
Fiske,  strike  your  attitude,"  and  I  would  immediately 
personify  an  idiot  as  best  I  could.  My  room-mate  was 
hazed  a  good  deal;  for  some  reason  the  third  classmen 
liked  to  haze  him.  Various  indignities  of  a  minor  kind 
were  heaped  upon  him.  For  instance,  every  day  when  he 
went  out  of  the  mess-hall  at  half  past  one,  after  dinner, 
he  was  met  by  a  third  classman  named  Upshur,  who  would 
say  to  him: 

1  'Good  afternoon,  Mr.  Craig." 

Craig  would  say: 

"Good  afternoon,  sir." 

"How  do  you  feel,  Mr.  Craig?" 

* '  Pretty  well,  thank  you. ' ' 

"Why,  Mr.  Craig,  you  don't  look  at  all  well.  You  had 
better  go  to  bed.  You  go  upstairs  and  undress  and  go 
to  bed,  and  I  '11  be  up  there  in  a  few  minutes  and  count 
your  pulse." 

So  Craig  would  have  to  go  to  bed  and  get  entirely  un 
dressed.  In  a  few  minutes  Upshur  would  come  in  and 
feel  his  pulse.  Then  he  would  say: 

"You  seem  to  be  a  good  deal  better  now,  Mr.  Craig; 
you  may  get  up." 

The  hazing  kept  up  for  two  or  three  months,  until 
finally,  one  Sunday  afternoon,  something  precipitated  a 
fight  between  the  two  classes.  I  do  not  remember  what 


THE  NAVAL  ACADEMY  11 

the  circumstance  was,  but  it  happened  on  the  plebe-class 
floor.  Hurry-up  calls  were  sent  out  for  reinforcements, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  the  greater  part  of  both  classes  were 
engaged  in  a  rough-and-tumble  fight.  As  the  plebes  were 
more  than  twice  the  third  class  in  number,  and  only  a 
year  younger  in  average  age,  the  result  was  a  complete 
triumph  for  the  plebes.  The  third  class  acknowledged 
this  straightforwardly,  and  agreed  to  stop  the  hazing 
at  once.  This  elevated  tremendously  our  standing — a 
standing  which  we  had  achieved  by  force  of  arms.  But 
of  course  we  were  still  plebes,  and  had  to  say  "sir"  to 
all  the  upper  classmen,  to  show  due  humility  toward  them 
in  all  ways,  and  to  realize  that,  despite  our  valor  on  the 
field  of  battle,  we  were  really  a  despicable  lot. 

The  semiannual  examination  resulted  in  "bilging'' 
more  than  half  the  class.  The  unfortunates  had  to  re 
sign  and  go  home,  leaving  only  about  fifty  in  the  class. 

We  were  very  busily  occupied  indeed.  We  were 
aroused  by  the  reveille  of  drum  and  fife  at  half  past  six 
in  the  winter  months,  and  at  six  at  other  times.  From 
then  until  ten  o'clock  at  night  we  did  all  things  in  obe 
dience  to  bugle-calls  at  stated  times.  Recitations,  study 
hours,  meals,  and  drills  followed  one  another  in  precise 
succession,  the  only  leisure  in  the  day-time  being  from 
about  five  until  half  past  six,  between  afternoon  drill 
and  supper-time.  The  evenings  were  spent  in  study  until 
half  past  nine.  From  half  past  nine  until  ten  the  mem 
bers  of  each  class  were  free  to  roam  about  the  corridors 
of  their  own  floor;  but  at  ten  o'clock  all  lights  had  to  be 
out,  and  every  man  must  be  in  bed.  Then  the  superin 
tendent  of  the  floor  would  go  to  each  room  to  see  if  both 
occupants  were  in  bed,  in  which  case  he  would  say,  "Good 
night."  The  occupants  of  each  bed  would  say,  "Good 
night,  sir,"  and  then  the  superintendent  would  go  out 
and  close  the  door. 

The  annual  examinations,  in  the  latter  part  of  May, 
closed  the  academic  year.  In  my  class  I  was  posted  num 
ber  one  at  first ;  but  some  subsequent  calculations,  which  I 


12    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

have  never  quite  understood,  based  on  the  fact  that  cer 
tain  other  midshipmen  failed  to  pass,  made  Weggman 
number  one  and  me  number  two. 

We  started  on  our  practice  cruise  in  the  early  part  of 
June,  and  came  back  to  Annapolis  in  the  latter  part  of 
September.  We  were  on  the  cruise  nearly  four  months, 
and  it  was  the  most  unpleasant  four  months  I  have  ever 
experienced.  We  were  embarked  in  two  ships,  the  old 
Constellation,  famous  from  the  War  of  1798,  and  the  Sara 
toga.  The  Saratoga  was  much  the  smaller  of  the  two, 
and  I  was  one  of  the  sixty  midshipmen  in  the  Saratoga. 
We  slept  in  hammocks,  a  thing  of  which  I  did  not  at  all  ap 
prove,  for  the  reason  that  I  would  have  nightmare  about 
once  in  three  nights.  One  has  to  lie  on  his  back  for  the 
most  part  in  a  hammock,  because  he  cannot  lie  out 
straight ;  and  if  one  has  any  tendency  toward  nightmare, 
the  hammock  aggravates  it  greatly.  The  nightmares 
that  I  suffered  while  sleeping  doubled  up  on  my  back  in 
my  hammock  were  sometimes  quite  distressing.  One 
night  I  found  myself  lying  on  the  deck,  very  much  be 
wildered,  and  two  of  my  classmates  kneeling  by  me. 
They  said  I  had  held  the  sheet  up  in  front  of  my  face,  and 
had  apparently  become  very  much  frightened  at  it,  and 
then  had  thrown  myself  out  of  my  hammock,  screaming. 

In  port  we  had  to  get  up  at  five  o  'clock  in  the  morning 
and  entertain  ourselves  as  best  we  could  on  the  wet  decks, 
which  were  being  scrubbed  down,  until  eight  o'clock,  when 
we  had  breakfast.  We  had  three  meals  a  day,  but  the 
only  thing  on  the  bill  of  fare  that  I  can  remember  was 
dried  apples.  I  think  we  had  them  for  every  meal,  but  I 
may  be  wrong  about  that.  I  remember  very  clearly, 
however,  that  when  we  were  nearly  out  of  dried  apples, 
we  went  into  some  port,  and  the  paymaster  went  ashore  to 
get  more  provisions.  The  midshipmen  had  to  haul  on  the 
ropes  which  hoisted  the  new  provisions  on  board,  and  we 
watched  with  intense  interest  the  marks  on  the  barrels  to 
see  what  they  contained.  All  contained  dried  apples. 

The  sixty  midshipmen  had  a  wash-room  away  forward 


13 

on  the  berth-deck,  which  had  nine  stationary  wash-basins. 
There  was  no  ventilation,  and  I  remember  sixty  more  or 
less  seasick  midshipmen  trying  to  wash  themselves  in 
nine  wash-basins,  and  not  making  any  very  determined 
efforts  to  keep  good  humored.  The  experience  was  very 
good,  doubtless,  but  none  of  us  has  ever  looked  back  on  it 
with  pleasure.  At  sea  we  had  to  stand  watches  both  night 
and  day,  and  we  had  nothing  to  eat  after  our  supper  of 
dried  apples  at  five  o'clock  until  eight  o'clock  the  next 
morning.  During  the  early  part  of  the  cruise,  before  we 
got  over  being  seasick,  we  spent  most  of  our  time  lying  on 
the  spar-deck  in  attitudes  of  dejection,  varied  by  trips 
to  the  lee  side  to  relieve  our  stomachic  disquietude,  and 
by  jeers  at  our  comrades  when  they  were  making  these 
trips.  We  had  study  hours  and  recitations  every  day.  I 
remember  that  we  were  called  by  the  bugle,  and  that  the 
tune  was  "Not  for  Joe."  We  had  to  haul  on  the  big 
ropes  that  moved  the  sails  and  yards,  alongside  of  the 
colored  servants,  and  the  officer  of  the  deck  would  call  out 
to  us  continually,  "Haul  away,  gentlemen." 

No  vessel  like  the  Saratoga  now  sails  the  seas.  There 
are  sailing  ships,  of  course,  still  on  the  ocean,  but  they 
are  very  different  from  the  Saratoga.  The  Saratoga 
was  a  man-of-war  in  the  same  sense  that  the  proudest 
battleship  is  now,  and  her  routine  was  carried  on  with 
just  as  much  rigor  and  precision.  The  man-of-warsman 
of  that  day  has  also  passed  away,  and  so  in  a  less  degree 
has  the  naval  officer  of  that  day.  Although  the  ships  car 
ried  guns,  and  although  it  was  realized  that  the  guns  were 
the  things  which  would  decide,  and  always  had  decided 
battles,  yet  the  gunnery  of  that  day  was  so  simple,  in 
comparison  with  the  seamanship  of  that  day,  that  a  naval 
officer's  reputation  depended  almost  wholly  on  his  ability 
in  handling  ships  under  sail.  The  amount  of  time  de 
voted  to  gunnery  drills  was  not  more  than  an  hour  a  day 
on  the  average,  and  usually  much  less,  while  the  whole 
time  at  sea  had  to  be  devoted  to  the  handling  of  the  ship. 

The   Saratoga   and  the   Constellation  had  no   steam 


14    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  KEAR-ADMIRAL 

power ;  they  depended  wholly  on  their  sails  for  their  pro 
pulsion.  A  few  of  the  cruising  ships  of  the  navy  had 
steam  power;  but  captains  ordinarily  used  it  for  going 
into  and  out  of  port  only,  and  did  virtually  all  of  their 
cruising  under  sail.  This  condition  continued  until  after 
1890,  though  with  a  gradually  increasing  tendency  to  dis 
card  sails.  Yet  every  naval  battle  of  the  Civil  War,  even 
that  between  the  Kearsarge  and  the  Alabama,  had  been 
fought  under  steam  alone !  The  reversion  of  the  navy  to 
sail  power  after  the  Civil  War  would  seem  an  amazing 
thing,  did  we  not  realize  ^hat  a  profound  conviction  set 
tled  upon  the  people  of  the  United  States  after  that  war 
that  it  would  be  the  last  war,  and  that  the  only  use  for  the 
navy  was  to  "show  the  flag"  in  foreign  ports. 

The  two  " practice  ships"  went  back  to  Annapolis  just 
before  the  first  of  October,  when  the  new  academic  year 
began.  We  were  all  delighted  to  get  ashore,  and  I 
have  never  had  such  a  feeling  of  enjoying  real  luxury  as 
when  I  then  stretched  myself  out  in  a  flat  bed  in  a  quiet 
room. 

The  next  academic  year,  my  third-class  year,  passed 
uneventfully  for  me.  The  first  two  months  of  the  year 
passed  rather  eventfully  for  four  of  my  class,  because 
they  indulged  in  hazing  to  such  a  degree  that  they  were 
court-martialed  and  dismissed.  The  rest  of  the  year  is  a 
blank  space  in  my  memory:  I  cannot  remember  a  single 
event  or  incident.  At  the  end  of  the  academic  year  Wegg- 
man  again  was  number  one,  and  I  was  number  two.  At 
the  beginning  of  the  year  I  was  elected  secretary  and 
treasurer  of  the  class ;  a  position  to  which  I  was  reflected 
in  each  of  the  two  following  years. 

My  second-class  academic  year  began  in  October.  The 
second-class  year  was  usually  considered  the  most  difficult 
year,  and  it  was  so  in  our  case.  At  the  end  of  that  year 
Peters  was  number  one,  I  was  number  two,  and  Wegg- 
man,  who  had  fallen  behind  a  great  deal  this  year,  stood 
number  three. 

The  events  of  my  second-class  year  that  stand  out  the 


THE  NAVAL  ACADEMY  15 

most  clearly  in  my  memory  are  my  fight  with  Michelson 
and  the  trip  of  the  midshipmen  to  Washington  to  take 
part  in  the  parade  on  Grant 's  second  inauguration,  March 
4,  1873. 

My  fight  with  Michelson  was  caused  by  what  I  thought 
to  be  an  affront  to  my  official  dignity.  I  was  a  "double 
diamond,"  or  sergeant,  as  was  Michelson;  but  one  eve 
ning,  due  to  the  absence  of  the  cadet  petty  officer  of  his 
company,  which  was  the  first  company,  it  devolved  upon 
Michelson  to  give  the  order  ' '  right  dress ' '  after  we  went 
left  face  into  line.  While  we  were  gradually  easing  back 
or  moving  backward  in  order  to  form  a  straight  line, 
Michelson  sang  out,  "Dress  back,  Mr.  Fiske." 

So  I  met  him  after  dinner  and  challenged  him  to  fight,  a 
challenge  that  he  accepted  with  promptness  and  appar 
ently  with  pleasure. 

Michelson  was  a  real  genius.  He  was  said  to  study 
less  than  any  other  man  in  the  class  and  to  occupy  most 
of  his  time  in  scientific  experiments ;  but  he  always  stood 
near  the  head  of  the  class.  Besides,  he  was  a  light 
weight  athlete  in  a  moderate  way,  and  took  extra  lessons 
in  fencing  and  boxing.  These  were  arts  of  which  at  that 
time  I  was  ignorant,  as  we  were  not  taught  them  until  our 
first-class  year.  Michelson  made  some  experiments  on 
the  velocity  of  light  in  1876  that  gave  him  world-wide 
fame.  He  resigned  a  few  years  later,  and  became  one  of 
the  foremost  physical  scientists  in  the  world.  The  fame 
of  Professor  A.  A.  Michelson  is  bright  in  the  minds  of 
the  scientific  men  of  every  country,  and  his  name  will  be 
known  long  after  the  names  of  many  men  who  are  eminent 
now  have  passed  into  oblivion. 

The  details  of  the  fight  were  very  carefully  arranged; 
in  fact  the  arranging  of  the  details  took  more  time  than 
did  the  fight  itself.  That  I  had  not  the  slightest  chance 
became  evident  in  about  one  minute;  but  I  hammered 
away  the  best  I  could  until  the  referees  saw  that  I 
couldn't  see  out  of  either  eye  and  declared  that  the  fight 
was  finished.  I  was  put  on  the  sick  list  by  the  surgeon 


16     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

for  "contusions,"  and  I  stayed  on  the  sick  list  for  eight 
days. 

The  battalion  of  midshipmen  were  called  at  half-past 
four  on  the  morning  of  March  4,  1873,  and  put  into  an 
early  train — a  very  cold  train — for  Washington.  After 
reaching  Washington,  we  formed  and  marched  through 
the  city  to  some  house.  We  then  broke  ranks  and  went 
into  the  house  to  get  warm.  I  was  color-sergeant  of  the 
battalion,  and  I  remember  that  I  had  a  very  hard  time 
struggling  along  against  the  cold  wind  and  the  dust  that 
it  raised.  While  we  were  in  this  house  a  rumor  was 
brought  in  that  the  West  Point  Cadets  were  not  going  to 
wear  their  overcoats.  As  it  would  be  very  disgraceful 
for  us  to  wear  ours  in  those  circumstances,  we  decided 
instantly  that  we  would  not  wear  them.  The  rumor  had 
just  as  much  basis  as  most  rumors  have;  but  the  news 
of  our  not  going  to  wear  our  overcoats  reached  the  West 
Pointers  promptly,  and  so  they  had  to  discard  theirs. 
The  result  was  that  the  cadets  of  both  academies  passed 
an  extremely  miserable  day.  During  the  march  of  our 
battalion  from  the  railway  station  I  had  so  much  diffi 
culty  in  carrying  the  flag  against  the  wind,  that  two  color- 
corporals  in  the  rear  rank  had  to  push  me  along.  So  the 
officer  in  charge  put  Bowyer  temporarily  in  my  place,  and 
put  me  in  the  rear  rank  in  Bowyer 's  place.  Bowyer  was 
a  large  and  very  strong  man,  and  he  carried  the  flag  with 
little  trouble. 

I  began  my  last  year  with  the  unfortunate  idea  that 
both  Weggman  and  Peters  were  ahead  of  me  for  the  first 
three  years,  and  that  I  might  just  as  well  "take  it  easy." 
I  did  take  it  easy,  and  I  have  been  sorry  for  it  ever  since. 
I  became  devoted  to  dancing,  and  I  took  much  more  in 
terest  in  the  pretty  Annapolis  girls  than  I  did  in  my  drills 
and  studies.  As  one  of  the  cadet  officers,  I  sat  at  a  special 
table  near  the  exit  of  the  mess-hall;  but  it  was  strictly 
against  orders  to  leave  it  without  permission.  One  after 
noon  I  made  an  engagement  with  a  young  lady  to  meet  her 
at  a  quarter-past  one  next  day,  and  at  the  appointed  time 


THE  NAVAL  ACADEMY  17 

I  sneaked  out  of  the  mess-hall  when  the  officer  in  charge 
was  not  looking.  I  joined  the  young  lady  and  had  a  pleas 
ant  walk;  but  the  fact  was  noted  by  one  of  the  officers, 
who  reported  it  to  the  superintendent,  Commodore  Wor- 
den,  the  man  who  fought  the  Monitor  in  the  battle  with  the 
Merrimac.  The  next  day  I  was  reduced  to  the  grade  of 
private.  I  was  compelled  to  cut  off  my  stripes  and  double 
diamonds,  and  a  letter  denouncing  my  conduct  was  read 
to  the  battalion. 

During  the  year  four  other  cadet  officers  and  petty  of 
ficers  were  reduced  to  the  ranks,  so  that  there  were  five  of 
us.  We  formed  a  club,  which  we  called  the  "Privates 
Club, ' '  to  enter  which  there  was  no  initiation  fee,  and  for 
which  the  only  requirement  was  that  one  should  have 
been  reduced  to  the  ranks  for  some  misconduct.  The 
only  principle  of  the  club  was  to  refrain  from  going  to 
dress-parade. 

Things  ran  on  for  a  short  while  very  pleasantly  until 
about  a  month  before  the  end  of  my  course  at  the  acad 
emy.  One  evening,  about  half  an  hour  after  dress- 
parade,  I  received  orders  to  report  to  the  officer  in  charge. 
He  said: 

"  Were  you  at  dress-parade  this  afternoon,  Mr.  Fiske?" 

"No,  sir,"  I  said. 

"You  are  not  on  the  sick  list  or  excused  list,  I  believe." 

"No,  sir." 

"Have  you  any  excuse  for  not  having  gone  to  dress- 
parade?" 

"No,  sir." 

The  next  morning  I  was  put  under  arrest  in  a  modi 
fied  degree.  That  is,  I  was  ordered  to  attend  all  the 
recitations  and  exercises,  but  was  to  be  marched  down  to 
the  Santee  every  evening  after  supper,  and  marched  back 
to  breakfast  formation  the  following  morning.  The 
Santee  was  an  old  sailing  ship,  which  was  moored  along 
side  of  a  wharf,  and  was  used  for  the  double  purpose  of 
holding  great  gun  exercises  and  as  a  place  of  confinement 
for  midshipmen  under  punishment. 


18     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

I  spent  my  last  month  at  the  Naval  Academy  under 
those  conditions.  The  annual  examinations  were  held  in 
May,  and  when  the  final  multiples  were  all  made  out,  I 
found,  to  my  astonishment,  that  I  was  number  two  for 
the  four-years'  course,  and  would  take  rank  next  to  the 
head  of  the  class.  This  fact  surprised  my  classmates 
also,  because  they  thought  that  I  had  gone  to  pieces  alto 
gether.  In  fact,  I  had ;  but  the  shock  of  being  sent  to  the 
Santee  braced  me  up,  and  operated  to  make  me  do  very 
much  better  on  my  final  examinations  than  I  would  have 
done  otherwise.  When  all  the  accounts  came  in,  I  found 
that  I  had  really  been  number  one  for  the  first  three  years, 
and  that  I  probably  could  have  been  one  for  the  four  years 
if  I  had  only  shown  a  little  more  sense  in  my  last  year. 

At  the  academy,  at  that  time,  the  " first  five"  in  the 
first  class  of  cadet  midshipmen  wore  a  star  on  each  side  of 
the  collar,  and  on  graduation  day  they  received  their  di 
plomas  from  the  secretary  of  the  navy  before  the  rest  of 
the  class  did.  Peters  received  his  diploma  first.  To  re 
ceive  it,  he  stretched  out  an  arm  that  had  on  it  a  double 
diamond  and  four  stripes ;  and  I  never  shall  get  over  the 
mortification  that  I  felt  when,  immediately  after  him,  I 
stretched  out  my  arm  on  which  were  no  stripes  or  dia 
monds  whatever,  but  the  marks  of  some  that  had  been  cut 
off  for  misconduct. 

"We  graduated  about  noon  May  30,  1874.  I  remember 
that  my  principal  anxiety  then  was  to  see  that  the  vari 
ous  members  of  the  class  paid  for  their  class-rings,  the 
average  cost  of  which  was  about  fifty  dollars.  As  secre 
tary  and  treasurer  of  the  class,  I  had  made  myself  per 
sonally  responsible  with  Bailey,  Banks  &  Biddle  for  all 
the  class-rings ;  and  so  I  was  very  diligent  in  rounding  up 
the  members  of  the  class,  and  reminding  them  to  pay  for 
their  rings  out  of  the  reserve  pay  which  the  regulations  of 
the  academy  compelled  every  midshipman  to  accumulate. 
All  the  class  paid  for  their  rings  that  afternoon  except 
two,  who  forgot  to  do  so ;  but  a  little  correspondence  with 
them  soon  rectified  the  situation. 


THE  NAVAL  ACADEMY  19 

I  suppose  we  felt  very  much  as  all  graduates  do,  but  I 
do  not  see  how  the  graduates  of  any  other  institution 
could  feel  quite  so  much  uncertainty  about  the  future  in 
one  way  and  so  little  in  another.  There  is  no  life  so 
varied  as  that  of  a  naval  officer,  so  full  of  startling  and 
sudden  experiences,  and  so  uncertain  in  regard  to  what 
those  experiences  may  be.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  each 
of  us  had  before  him  the  practical  certainty  of  honorable 
and  sufficiently  lucrative  employment  for  a  lifetime,  a 
prospect  which  few  other  graduates  have. 

I  doubt  if  any  of  us  was  ever  as  good  a  man  after 
ward  as  he  was  on  his  graduation  day.  Every  one  of  us 
had  the  purpose  to  lead  an  honorable  life,  to  reject  all 
temptations,  to  refuse  to  take  unfair  advantage  of  any 
thing  or  anybody  for  the  sake  of  material  gain,  and  to 
live  in  such  a  way  as  to  be  worthy  of  the  navy.  We  had  a 
profound  reverence  for  the  navy,  and  the  greatest  am 
bition  which  any  of  us  had  was  to  be  "  a  good  officer. ' ' 

This  was  not  a  mean  ambition  or  one  easily  realized. 
A  wise  old  sailor  said  to  me  one  day  on  the  practice  cruise, 
"I  don't  think  it  's  hard,  Mr.  Fiske,  to  be  a  naval  officer; 
but  it  must  be  awful  hard  to  be  a  good  one." 

Few  wiser  remarks  have  I  ever  heard.  How  easy  it 
is  to  fill  any  position  in  life,  how  difficult  it  is  to  fill  it 
well! 


CHAPTER  III 

THE   MIDSHIPMAN    CRUISE — KALAKAUA  AND   THE 
SANDWICH    ISLANDS 

AFTER  graduation  I  went  out  to  a  farm  which  my 
father  had  bought  outside  of  Cincinnati,  but  I  was 
not  allowed  to  stay  there  long.  Of  course  I  did  not 
wish  to  do  so,  for  I  was  eager  for  those  adventures  on 
the  sea  and  in  foreign  lands  that  I  had  read  about  in 
boyhood,  and  of  which  I  had  heard  many  stories  while 
I  was  at  Annapolis.  My  mother  did  not  sympathize 
with  my  feelings  very  much,  but  she  did  somewhat,  for 
she  herself  was  of  an  adventurous  disposition ;  perhaps 
this  was  the  reason  she  had  married  a  minister.  At 
length,  about  the  first  of  August,  orders  came  for  mid 
shipman  B.  A.  Fiske  to  report  on  August  15,  1874,  to 
the  commander-in-chief  of  the  North  Pacific  Fleet  at 
the  navy-yard  at  Mare  Island,  California.  My  mother 
was  almost  prostrated  when  the  orders  finally  came; 
but  she  went  bravely  with  me  to  the  station,  and  waved 
farewell  as  the  train  started  to  the  west. 

The  trip  to  Mare  Island,  which  is  about  forty  miles 
from  San  Francisco,  took  seven  days.  It  was  really  a 
most  uncomfortable  trip,  but  to  a  man  who  was  only  two 
months  more  than  twenty  years  old  it  was  full  of  ad 
venture  and  sometimes  of  excitement.  The  railroad  had 
been  completed  only  a  few  years  before,  and  it  was  hardly 
yet  finished  in  all  ways.  There  were  no  dining-cars,  of 
course,  and  we  took  our  meals  at  stations  along  the  road, 
which  in  many  cases  were  of  unpainted  pine  boards. 
There  had  been  a  number  of  attacks  on  the  trains  by 
Indians,  and  so  every  man  of  us  carried  arms  of  some 
description.  I  carried  a  tremendous  navy  revolver, 

20 


THE  MIDSHIPMAN"  CRUISE  21 

which  could  fire  six  45-caliber  bullets,  and  which  had 
belonged  to  my  uncle.  We  occasionally  saw  Indians  gal 
loping  about,  and  the  villages  that  we  passed  were  of  the 
crudest  character.  At  some  of  the  stations  some  of  the 
passengers  would  get  off,  and  get  into  enormous  stage 
coaches,  drawn  by  four  or  more  horses,  coach  and  horses 
covered  with  white  dust;  and  the  horses  would  gallop 
off  with  them,  sending  up  clouds  of  white  powder  into 
the  air.  The  railroad  lay  across  the  Great  American 
Desert,  as  it  was  then  called,  and  we  traveled  for  days 
along  alkali  plains  on  which  there  was  no  vegetation 
except  a  very  little  sage-brush,  and  the  air  was  so  dry 
and  hot  that  our  lips  cracked. 

One  afternoon  I  was  sitting  on  the  rear  platform  of 
the  rear  car,  going  through  a  narrow  canon,  when  in  an 
instant  we  emerged  into  a  broad  and  level  plain,  covered 
with  luxuriant  green  vegetation;  and  we  looked  behind 
us  and  saw  a  wall  of  rock,  through  which  we  seemed  to 
have  come  as  through  a  door.  We  were  on  the  fertile 
ground  of  Utah,  which  the  Mormons  had  made  fertile  by 
cutting  canals  of  water  through  it. 

On  the  seventh  day  of  the  trip  I  arrived  at  Vallejo,  a 
little  town  opposite  Mare  Island,  on  which  the  navy- 
yard  is  situated,  and  I  drove  proudly  in  a  carriage  to 
the  Barnard  House. 

I  saw  a  number  of  naval  uniforms  there,  and  I  made 
many  acquaintances  before  dinner-time.  That  evening 
there  was  a  dance  in  the  little  hotel  ballroom,  and  I  danced 
every  alternate  dance  with  Miss  Greathouse,  a  pretty 
girl  from  Kentucky,  who  was  attired  in  an  absolutely 
beautiful  pink-and-light-blue  dress. 

The  next  morning  I  donned  my  uniform  and  reported 
to  Admiral  Almy,  who  was  commander-in-chief  of  the 
fleet,  but  had  a  temporary  office  in  the  navy-yard.  His 
flagship,  the  Pensacola,  was  undergoing  radical  repairs, 
and  was  moored  alongside  the  wharf.  Her  condition  was 
such  that  nobody  lived  on  board.  The  crew  and  the  mid 
shipmen  lived  on  board  the  old  line-of-battle  ship  Inde- 


22    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

pendence,  and  the  higher  officers  lived  on  shore,  most 
of  them  in  San  Francisco. 

During  the  next  five  months  I  had  a  splendid  time. 
Our  duties  consisted  in  supervising,  under  a  lieutenant, 
the  work  of  repair  parties  of  sailors  sent  on  board  the 
Pensacola;  but  these  duties  were  over  by  five  o'clock,  and 
on  every  alternate  day  we  did  not  have  any  duties  at  all. 
We  had  a  great  deal  of  leisure,  too  much,  in  fact ;  so  that 
I  am  surprised  now  that  we  kept  as  good  as  we  did. 
Our  main  diversion  was  to  go  over  to  Vallejo  and  call 
on  the  young  ladies  there  and  play  billiards  in  the  Barn 
ard  House.  I  became  very  devoted  to  the  daughter  of  the 
Presbyterian  minister.  One  day  I  was  standing  at  the 
bar  drinking  a  sherry  cobbler,  which  was  a  great  drink 
in  those  days.  Just  as  I  finished  my  drink,  I  saw  this 
young  lady  go  by.  I  immediately  hurried  out  to  the 
street,  and  I  joined  her  before  she  had  gone  very  far. 
I  had  hardly  done  so  when  the  barkeeper  rushed  up  and 
seized  me  suddenly  from  behind,  shouting  ''Look  here, 
Mister,  you  didn't  pay  for  them  drinks." 

There  was  a  great  deal  of  drinking  going  on  then 
among  the  naval  officers  in  Vallejo.  There  were  a  num 
ber  of  ships  in  port,  which  had  come  in  from  long  cruises 
at  sea,  and  the  officers  had  saved  up  a  good  deal  of  money. 
They  were  mostly  young  men,  the  average  lieutenant 
being  about  twenty-six  or  twenty-seven  years  old,  and 
nearly  all  of  them  were  unmarried.  When  I  remember 
how  much  drinking  there  was,  and  how  little  actual 
drunkenness,  I  realize  what  a  gulf  there  really  is  be 
tween  the  two  conditions.  I  became  convinced,  however, 
in  a  few  days  that  I  was  in  a  dangerous  atmosphere.  I 
considered  the  advisability  of  adopting  total  abstinence ; 
but  I  hesitated  to  do  this,  as  it  would  put  me  virtually 
in  a  class  by  myself.  As  I  had  the  ambition  which  most 
young  men  had,  and  still  have,  of  being  "a  man  of  the 
world,"  I  finally  decided  to  abstain  totally  from  distilled 
liquors  (that  is,  from  whisky,  brandy,  gin,  alcohol,  and 
rum),  but  to  drink  wine  and  beer.  I  cannot  say  that  I 


THE  MIDSHIPMAN  CRUISE  23 

have  ever  had  any  reason  to  regret  my  decision,  which  I 
carried  out,  with  very  few  lapses,  for  more  than  thirty 
years. 

Finally  the  Pensacola's  repairs  were  finished,  and  we 
started  for  Honolulu.  We  steamed  out  of  the  beautiful 
bay  of  San  Francisco  just  before  sunset  on  January  27, 
1875,  and  the  setting  sun  threw  a  golden  light  upon  the 
water  ahead  of  us.  We  accepted  this  as  an  augury  of  a 
cruise  that  would  be  bright  and  happy,  and  full  of  ad 
ventures  of  many  kinds.  We  had  on  board  King  Kala- 
kaua  of  the  Hawaiian  Islands,  then  called  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  and  a  suite  of  several  officials.  Kalakaua  had 
just  made  a  tour  of  the  United  States,  and  was  going 
back  to  his  dominions  under  the  auspices  of  the  United 
States  Government  liberally  supplied  with  cigars  and 
wine. 

His  birthday  occurred  a  few  days  after  leaving  port. 
I  sat  next  to  Governor  Capena,  governor  of  the  island 
of  Maui,  at  dinner  that  night,  and  the  governor's  servant 
stood  behind  his  chair.  This  was  the  first  time  that  I 
had  ever  been  at  a  large  dinner  and  the  first  time  I  had 
ever  drunk  champagne.  I  did  not  notice  that  the  gov 
ernor's  servant  filled  my  glass  every  time  I  looked  away, 
and  the  result  was  a  headache  next  morning  so  clean- 
cut  and  sharp  that  it  made  an  indelible  impression  on 
my  memory. 

The  following  evening  I  was  officer  of  the  forecastle, 
and  about  11  o'clock  I  saw  the  light  of  a  lantern  flashing 
about  near  me.  I  went  up  to  it,  and  saw  it  was  held 
by  a  sailor,  who  seemed  to  be  looking  into  out-of-the-way 
places.  I  said  to  him  sharply: 

"What  are  you  doing  with  that  light?" 

"I  'm  looking  for  his  Majesty,  sir,"  he  replied.  His 
Majesty  could  not  be  found  on  deck,  but  was  found  later 
in  the  admiral's  office,  asleep. 

The  Pensacola  was  a  double-decked  frigate,  with  auxili 
ary  steam  power,  but  at  sea  we  always  proceeded  by  sail 
alone.  One  morning  about  daybreak  I  was  aroused  by 


24    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

a  frightful  crash,  as  if  the  whole  ship  had  split  in  two, 
and  heard  the  boatswain's  sharp  whistle  and  his  call, 
"All  hands  save  ship."  There  were  thirteen  midship 
men  and  three  clerks  sleeping  in  the  steerages  then;  I 
was  one  of  the  fortunate  ones  who  had  a  bunk.  I  dressed 
myself  quickly  and  went  on  deck.  I  saw  the  executive 
officer,  Lieutenant-Commander  Brown,  giving  orders  on 
the  bridge  over  the  quarter-deck,  with  the  captain  stand 
ing  beside  him,  and  a  scene  of  indescribable  confusion 
everywhere.  It  was  raining  hard,  and  a  gale  was  blow 
ing,  and  the  ship  was  rolling  heavily.  I  could  not  make 
out  at  first  what  was  the  matter,  but  I  finally  saw  that 
the  middle  one  of  the  three  masts,  which  we  called  the 
"main  mast,"  had  broken  in  two  about  half-way  up  from 
the  deck;  that  it  had  fallen  over,  bringing  down  with 
it  the  maintopsail-yard,  and  that  it  had  carried  part  of 
the  other  two  masts  with  it  also.  I  have  always  been 
of  a  timid  disposition,  but,  for  some  reason,  in  times  of 
excitement  I  seem  to  get  so  interested  as  to  forget  it. 
So  on  this  occasion  I  jumped  into  the  work  aloft,  and 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  captain ;  so  that  he  reported 
me,  among  others,  to  the  admiral  for  good  conduct  in  the 
emergency. 

By  the  close  of  the  day  we  had  the  wreck  cleared  up, 
but  not,  of  course,  repaired,  and  a  few  days  later  we 
steamed  into  the  most  heavenly  place,  according  to  ap 
pearance,  that  I  had  ever  seen.  We  approached  the 
harbor  of  Honolulu  by  steaming  to  the  westward  along 
the  southern  coast  of  the  island  of  Oahu,  a  coast  evi 
dently  of  volcanic  origin,  high  and  rugged,  but  covered 
for  the  most  part  with  dense  green  vegetation.  We 
rounded  Diamond  Head,  and  then  slowed  down,  and 
took  a  pilot  on  board.  He  conducted  us  through  a  nar 
row  channel  of  deep  blue  water,  bounded  on  each  side 
by  coral  reefs,  and  then  turned  to  the  left  into  an  ap 
proximately  circular  land-locked  bay.  Near  the  beach 
was  a  little  city  of  white  houses,  shining  through  trees, 
with  here  and  there  a  church  spire  or  a  gray  tower 


25 

showing,  and  backed  by  a  low  mountain-range,  over  which 
hung  dense  white  cumulus  clouds  that  were  blown  toward 
the  west  by  the  brisk  trade-wind. 

We  anchored  perhaps  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the 
water-front  of  the  town,  planted  an  anchor  on  a  reef  near 
by,  and  hauled  our  stern  around  toward  the  reef.  In 
this  position  our  bow  pointed  toward  the  northeast,  fac 
ing  the  direction  of  the  trade-wind,  which  came  across 
the  Pacific  Ocean  and  down  Nuana  Valley. 

We  stayed  there  four  months.  During  these  months 
man-of-war  discipline  was  maintained  in  the  strictest 
fashion  on  board  the  ship,  and  drills  were  carried  on  with 
spirit  and  regularity.  Some  of  the  drills  consisted  in 
infantry  maneuvers  and  marches  on  the  shore.  Our 
captain  was  Bancroft  Gherardi,  one  of  the  finest  men  I 
have  ever  met,  kindly,  highly  intelligent,  interested  in 
everything,  and  exceedingly  strict.  The  Pensacola  was 
as  neat  as  the  typical  bandbox,  and  so  was  everybody  on 
board.  The  life  on  board  was  such  as  would  meet  the 
requirements  of  the  most  exacting  person. 

But  the  life  on  shore  was  different,  even  the  lives  of 
some  of  the  officers  of  the  ship,  including,  I  am  sorry  to 
say,  myself.  The  king  was  in  many  ways  what  is  now 
called  a  " sport."  He  was  a  man  of  great  natural  abil 
ity,  well  educated,  attractive,  an  excellent  speaker,  rather 
handsome,  a  real  friend  of  his  people,  and  a  typical  good 
fellow  in  every  way.  But  he  drank  more  than  was  good 
for  him,  and  his  code  of  personal  morality  was  not  much 
above  that  of  the  rest  of  his  people.  He  had  a  court 
which  was  like  those  of  the  European  kingdoms,  and 
modeled  on  them,  except,  of  course,  that  it  was  smaller, 
and  that  the  officials  were  not  in  the  Vere  de  Vere  caste 
to  the  same  degree  as  were  the  officials  of  the  European 
courts.  For  instance,  the  lord  high  chamberlain  was 
known  in  his  daily  life  as  "Ned  Boyd,  the  butcher." 
The  officials  of  the  Government  were  native  Hawaiians 
or  half-whites,  though  I  think  the  attorney-general  was 
pure  white.  This  attorney-general  used  always  to  wear  a 


26    FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

very  large,  gray  high  hat  with  an  enormous  brim,  a 
long  black  coat,  a  big  red  necktie,  and  light  trousers.  As 
he  had  an  extraordinarily  red  face,  his  appearance  was 
attractive ;  that  is,  it  attracted  attention. 

The  king  introduced  us  into  the  best  circles  of  Hawaiian 
society.  After  that  I  think  that  the  conduct  of  some  of 
us  was  not  such  as  our  parents  would  approve  of.  There 
were  two  kinds  of  society  in  Honolulu  at  this  time,  the 
missionary  society  and  the  half -white  society.  The  mis 
sionary  society  was  composed  of  as  fine  people,  men 
and  women,  as  one  would  meet  anywhere.  They  were 
either  the  families  and  relatives  of  missionaries  or  the 
descendants  of  missionaries.  The  half -white  society  was 
composed,  as  the  name  indicates,  of  people  who  were  half- 
white  and  half -Kanaka,  the  word  ''Kanaka"  being  the 
native  word  for  Hawaiian,  and  in  the  Hawaiian  language 
meaning  literally  ' '  a  man. ' f  One  family  in  the  so-called 
half- white  society  was  not  quite  half -white ;  this  was  the 
Afong  family.  The  father  was  a  wealthy  Chinese  mer 
chant,  and  the  mother  was  the  daughter  of  a  Portuguese 
man  and  an  Hawaiian  woman.  This  family  had  several 
attractive  daughters,  only  one  of  whom  at  the  time  of 
our  visit  was  "in  society." 

At  first  the  base  of  our  operations  on  shore  was  the 
Eoyal  Hawaiian  Hotel,  but  shortly  after  our  arrival 
half  a  dozen  of  us  rented  a  cottage  near  it,  which  we  called 
"Whisky  Eanch. "  It  had  a  few  comfortable  rooms  for 
sleeping  and  an  enormous  bath-tub,  the  top  of  which  came 
even  with  the  floor. 

I  remember  two  grand  balls  during  our  stay.  The 
first  was  given  by  the  Government  to  the  Pensacola,  and 
the  second  was  given,  as  I  recollect  it,  to  some  German 
ship.  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  my  recollections  of  either 
ball  are  not  at  all  clear.  I  have  never  seen  since  such  a 
general  disregard  of  prudence  in  the  matter  of  drinking 
as  I  did  at  those  balls,  especially  at  the  first  ball.  A  large 
pavilion  was  erected  on  the  grounds  of  the  hotel,  and  in 
this  the  dancing  was  held ;  but  people  would  go  out  con- 


THE  MIDSHIPMAN  CRUISE  27 

tinually  to  drink  champagne.  I  do  not  remember  that 
anything  else  was  drunk.  My  recollections  of  the  latter 
part  of  the  evening  are  very  cloudy,  but  very  beautiful. 
Shortly  afterward  I  awoke  in  the  cool,  gray  dawn  of 
the  "morning  after,"  and  found  myself  lying  on  the 
front  steps  of  the  hotel  in  full-dress  uniform. 

The  editor  of  the  daily  paper  was  at  the  ball.  The 
next  day  the  Honolulu  Gazette  had  a  really  wonderful  ac 
count  of  it.  This  was  so  wonderful  that  most  of  us  got 
copies  of  the  Gazette  and  kept  them.  I  have  lost  mine, 
and  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  I  remember  only  one  sen 
tence  in  it.  It  read,  "It  was  a  Honolulu  night  of  tender 
tone;  the  scandent  stars  kept  time  with  the  musically 
marching  hours,  and  shone  from  azure  depths  of  cir 
cumambient  love." 

One  afternoon  about  sunset  I  went  forward  to  re 
lieve  Midshipman  Robinson  as  officer  of  the  forecastle. 
The  dinghy  was  being  hoisted  when,  through  clumsiness, 
the  forward  end  became  unhooked,  and  the  man  in  the 
bow  fell  into  the  water,  which  was  perfectly  smooth. 
Robinson  and  I  jumped  overboard,  and  so  did  about  one 
hundred  sailors,  and  in  a  few  seconds  the  water  was 
crowded  with  men  trying  to  save  somebody  from  drown 
ing,  but  nobody  knew  whom.  Several  men  came  near 
being  drowned,  though  nobody  was.  The  only  result  of 
the  episode,  as  far  as  I  know,  was  that  the  salt  water  got 
into  an  expensive  watch  that  Robinson  wore  and  ruined 
it. 

At  some  time  about  the  first  of  July  we  went  on  a 
cruise  to  the  other  islands  of  the  group.  We  got  under 
way  in  the  afternoon,  and  toward  evening  were  steaming 
to  the  eastward  against  the  fresh  trade-wind,  which  vir 
tually  always  blows  here.  We  passed  the  Island  of  Mo- 
lokai,  to  which  lepers  were  sent  and  are  still  sent.  Then 
we  turned  to  the  southward,  and  the  next  day  we  steamed 
down  the  west  coast  of  the  beautiful  island  of  Mauai, 
and  looked  with  delight  at  the  high  mountain-ranges,  cov 
ered  with  wild  and  luxuriant  vegetation,  and  pierced  by 


28    FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAE-ADMIBAL 

narrow,  rocky  canons  and  broad  and  fertile  valleys.  We 
anchored  in  the  bay  of  Lahaina,  called  by  sailors  "  blow 
hole  bay,"  because  the  wind  always  blows  there  with 
tremendous  velocity  from  the  shore,  having  been  fun- 
neled  through  a  canon,  which  is  wide  on  the  east  side 
and  narrow  on  the  west.  Bowing  from  the  ship  to  the 
shore  was  very  arduous  labor,  but  coming  back  was  easy, 
because  we  simply  " peaked"  the  oars,  so  that  they  acted 
as  sails,  and  made  the  wind  blow  us  from  the  shore  to 
the  ship.  Some  of  us  made  an  expedition  from  here  to 
a  valley  that  Mark  Twain  described  as  being  the  most 
beautiful  in  the  world.  Certainly  it  was  beautiful,  being 
narrow  and  deep  and  long,  bounded  by  high  mountain- 
ranges,  and  filled  with  ferns  of  many  kinds,  some  of  them 
very  large,  and  some  of  them  exceedingly  delicate  and 
fine. 

From  Lahaina  we  went  to  Hilo,  the  largest  town  in 
the  Island  of  Hawaii,  the  southernmost  and  largest  island 
of  the  Hawaiian  group.  We  spent  one  day  in  steaming  to 
the  eastward  along  the  high,  steep  volcanic  coast,  part  of 
which  was  literally  "pinnacled  in  clouds."  Many  water 
falls  could  be  seen  falling  down  the  abrupt  and  pre 
cipitous  coast-line;  at  one  time  we  could  count  eighteen. 

The  next  morning,  after  anchoring,  I  took  the  sailing- 
launch  with  a  party  of  men  ashore  to  get  fresh  water. 
This  procedure  was  very  frequent  in  those  days  and  in 
the  days  gone  by,  but  I  doubt  if  it  is  ever  practised  now. 
I  took  the  sailing-launch  up  the  small  river  that  emptied 
into  the  bay,  and  filled  it  with  fresh  water  by  the  simple 
process  of  taking  the  plug  out  of  the  bottom  and  letting 
the  water  run  in.  A  number  of  Hawaiian  women  came 
and  sat  on  the  beach  near  by,  and  I  got  a  half -white  man 
who  happened  to  be  there  to  tell  me  what  they  were 
talking  about.  He  said  that  they  were  talking  about  the 
men,  and  he  told  me  what  they  said. 

The  reason  for  going  to  Hilo  was  that  we  might  go 
from  there  to  the  volcano  of  Kilauea.  We  went  to  the 
volcano  in  parties.  I  was  in  a  party  with  three  other 


THE  MIDSHIPMAN  CKUISE  29 

midshipmen,  Dorn,  Kobinson,  and  Allderdice.  The  trip 
took  twenty-four  hours,  including  our  stop  at  night,  and 
was  made  on  horseback.  We  arrived  at  the  Volcano 
House  one  morning,  and  at  once  descended  into  the 
crater.  The  crater  was  about  three  miles  across,  and  was 
in  general  circular  in  shape.  We  descended  to  the  floor 
of  the  crater  by  means  of  a  succession  of  ladders.  The 
floor  of  the  crater  was  of  more  or  less  hard  lava,  seamed 
with  fissures  about  two  inches  wide,  down  which  we 
could  see  red-hot  lava.  In  many  cases  the  red-hot  lava 
was  so  close  to  the  top,  that  we  put  our  sticks  down  and 
lighted  them.  In  one  of  these  fissures,  near  the  top,  I 
saw  some  ferns  growing.  I  picked  one  of  them  and  I 
sent  it  to  my  mother  in  my  next  letter.  Not  many  years 
ago,  in  looking  into  the  family  album,  I  found  that  fern, 
secured  on  a  piece  of  paper,  with  an  explanation  as  to 
what  it  was,  written  in  my  handwriting. 

Besides  the  fissures,  which  ran  in  all  directions  across 
the  crater-floor,  there  were  three  burning  lakes  of  molten 
lava,  each  an  acre  or  more  in  extent.  To  a  man  standing 
on  the  shores  of  one  of  these  lakes  the  scene  was  inexpres 
sibly  full  of  awe.  The  whole  mass  of  lava  was  in  violent 
ebullition.  The  scum  at  the  top  was  very  dark  in  color, 
but  the  crust  was  continually  broken  here  and  there  by 
explosions  underneath,  when  little  columns  of  red  lava 
would  be  thrown  up  by  the  forces  beneath.  I  remember 
very  vaguely  seeing  what  might  be  called  "a  lava-fall," 
and  standing  by  a  small  river  of  red  molten  lava  that 
rushed  over  a  precipice  down  into  a  sort  of  hole  and 
disappeared  into  the  bowels  of  the  earth.  At  one  time, 
as  we  were  standing  on  the  brink  of  one  of  the  lakes, 
the  wind  suddenly  shifted  in  such  a  way  as  to  blow  over 
us  the  hot  sulphurous  fumes  that  were  rising  from  the 
lake.  We  seemed  to  be  in  immediate  danger  of  asphyxia 
tion  when  the  wind  suddenly  shifted  again.  The  guide 
told  us  then  that  this  was  the  principal  danger  in  going 
into  the  crater. 

That  night  we  got  on  our  horses  and  galloped  around 


30    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  crater.  The  night  was  very  dark,  and  we  could  see 
the  red  fissures  crossing  back  and  forth  on  the  floor  of 
the  crater,  the  three  burning  lakes,  and  the  reflection  of 
the  whole  showing  red  on  the  clouds  above.  The  Volcano 
House  was  about  a  hundred  yards  from  the  brink  of 
the  crater,  and  the  last  thing  I  saw  before  I  closed  my 
eyes  that  night  was  this  red  reflection  on  the  clouds. 

The  next  morning  we  returned  by  another  route  than 
the  one  by  which  we  had  come.  We  started  in  a  heavy 
rain,  and  rode  for  some  hours  through  a  dense  vegeta 
tion.  Then  suddenly  we  came  to  what  in  the  Hawaiian 
language  is  called  a  pali,  and  there  we  saw  ahead  of  us  a 
large  plain  perfectly  sterile  and  flat.  Descending  the 
pali  by  a  road  that  was  narrow  and  winding  and  yet 
steep,  we  entered  into  another  climate.  We  left  a  climate 
that  was  wet  and  went  into  one  that  was  dry.  From  the 
top  of  the  pali  we  could  see  the  ocean  far  beneath,  with 
the  horizon  so  far  away  that  it  seemed  almost  on  a  level 
with  us,  and  so  faint  that  we  could  hardly  tell  where  the 
sea  stopped  and  the  sky  began,  though  the  air  was  very 
clear. 

The  explanation  for  the  sudden  change  in  climate  was 
that  the  country  which  we  had  been  riding  through  was 
so  situated  that  the  northeast  trade-wind,  blowing  on  it 
directly,  condensed  into  mist  and  rain,  whereas  the  plain 
upon  which  we  descended  was  so  sheltered  behind  the 
condensing  high  land  that  the  air  which  blew  over  it 
was  wholly  dry. 

About  one  o'clock  we  came  to  a  little  village,  and  were 
welcomed  most  hospitably  by  a  French  missionary.  He 
invited  us  to  lunch.  The  lunch  consisted  of  bread-fruit, 
which  is  a  little  like  coarse  sweet  potato  with  the  taste 
taken  out,  and  of  warm  water,  which  he  kept  in  bottles. 
Water  was  very  scarce  there,  and  had  to  be  treasured 
carefully.  The  priest  spoke  English  beautifully,  and 
was  one  of  the  most  attractive  gentlemen  I  have  ever  met. 
He  had  a  tiny  church,  and  inside  were  some  highly  colored 
pictures  of  the  saints.  A  native  pointed  to  these  pic- 


THE  MIDSHIPMAN  CRUISE  31 

tures  proudly,  and  said  "Maikai,"  which  is  the  Hawaiian 
word  for  "good."  The  priest  told  us  that  about  a  year 
before  he  had  come  back  from  Paris,  where  he  had  spent 
his  vacation  after  a  previous  sojourn  of  seven  years  in 
this  place,  and  that  he  was  then  looking  forward  to  his 
next  visit  to  Paris,  which  would  occur  six  years  later. 
This  delightful  and  highly  cultivated  man  seemed  as 
happy  as  most  of  us,  and  yet  his  life  was  spent  in  an 
arid  tract  somewhere  in  the  Island  of  Hawaii,  among  the 
most  ignorant  kind  of  natives,  where  he  rarely  saw  a 
white  man  and  rarely  got  a  mail.  Truly  "the  mind  is 
its  own  place,  and  of  itself  can  make  a  heaven  of  hell,  a 
hell  of  heaven."  This  man's  happiness  was  due  to  the 
fact  that  he  was  accomplishing  his  mission.  His  mission 
was  the  noble  one  of  saving  the  souls  of  men. 

That  afternoon  we  rode  our  tired  horses  over  what  was 
mostly  beds  of  cooled  lava,  and  at  nightfall  we  arrived 
at  a  little  inn  kept  by  an  old  sea-captain  who  had  mar 
ried  an  Hawaiian  woman.  We  and  our  horses  were  just 
about  as  tired  as  we  could  be  and  I  know  of  one  young 
man  who  soon  stretched  out  between  two  cool  white 
sheets  and  forgot  how  tired  he  was. 

The  next  morning  we  were  so  sore  that  we  could  hardly 
eat  our  breakfast.  The  old  sea-captain  then  said  that 
there  was  near  by  a  pool  of  warm  sulphur  water  which 
was  splendid  for  the  complaint  we  had,  and  we  con 
cluded  to  try  it.  So  he  and  his  two  young  daughters, 
whose  mother  was  a  Hawaiian  woman,  escorted  us  to 
this  pool.  It  looked  very  attractive,  but  seemed  a  little 
shallow.  We  soon  found,  however,  that  it  was  exceed 
ingly  deep,  but  was  so  clear  and  the  bottom  so  white  that 
the  bottom  looked  to  be  nearer  the  top  than  it  actually 
was. 

As  we  made  no  move  to  disrobe,  the  captain  said, 
"Why,  aren't  you  going  in?"  We  felt  a  little  natural 
modesty  in  the  presence  of  these  two  young  women  un 
til  we  saw  them  disrobe  and  plunge  head  foremost  into 
the  pool.  Then  we  promptly  followed  suit,  and  had  one 


32     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

of  the  most  delightful  baths  we  ever  had,  the  warm 
sulphurous  water  acting  like  balm  to  our  aching  joints 
and  muscles. 

We  joined  the  ship  that  evening,  and  a  few  days  after 
ward  sailed  back  to  Honolulu ;  but  before  we  left,  a  fleet 
of  war-galleys,  decked  with  flowers  and  plants  and  filled 
with  natives  armed  and  in  war  costume,  paraded  around 
the  bay  to  do  us  honor. 

We  stayed  in  Honolulu  about  two  months.  The  prin 
cipal  thing  that  I  remember  is  the  ball  that  was  given  to 
a  German  ship,  to  which  we  were  invited.  The  mid 
shipmen  of  Whisky  Ranch  invited  some  of  the  German 
midshipmen  to  the  cottage  during  the  evening.  As  it 
was  too  laborious  an  undertaking  to  go  to  the  hotel  every 
time  we  wanted  a  drink  of  champagne,  we  sent  our  serv 
ant,  Tom  Peters,  to  the  hotel,  and  he  brought  us  plenty. 
The  night  passed  without  ennui,  but  I  remember  only 
one  incident,  and  that  was  receiving  the  congratulations 
of  the  company  because  I  threw  a  base-ball  bat  through 
the  window  with  such  skill  as  to  break  every  pane  of 
glass. 

We  left  Honolulu  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  September,  and 
I  am  sure  that  every  one  of  us  carried  away  with  him 
an  affectionate  feeling  for  the  kindly  people,  the  beauti 
ful  flower-bordered  streets,  the  silvery  moonlight,  Dia 
mond  Head,  the  lunar  rainbows,  the  pali,  the  wonderful 
verdure,  the  quiet,  landlocked  harbor,  the  fresh  trade- 
winds  that  blew  unceasingly,  and  the  delightful  warmth 
that  was  never  heat. 

A  trip  of  thirty  days,  taken  under  sail,  over  warm, 
smooth  seas,  brought  us  to  La  Paz,  a  small  mining  town 
in  the  southeastern  end  of  Lower  California,  on  the  Gulf 
of  California.  It  was  a  terribly  hot  place.  The  only 
thing  I  remember  clearly  is  going  ashore  one  afternoon 
and  meeting  there  a  sailor  who  had  just  received  an  hon 
orable  discharge  from  the  ship,  and  whose  name  was 
Segur.  Segur  had  been  captain  of  the  f oretop ;  that  is, 
he  had  been  in  charge  of  all  the  sailors  who  worked  on 


THE  MIDSHIPMAN  CRUISE  33 

the  foremast  and  on  the  sails  spread  on  it.  I  was  "mid 
shipman  of  the  foretop,"  and  Segur  had  been  my  right- 
hand  man.  So  when  I  met  Segur  ashore,  already  in  his 
civilian  clothes,  and  Segur  asked  me  to  have  a  drink 
with  him,  in  memory  of  old  times  I  consented.  Unfor 
tunately,  I  broke  my  rule  of  never  drinking  spirituous 
liquors,  and  drank  a  Mexican  drink  called  "mescal,"  with 
Segur,  which  in  a  short  time  made  me  exceptionally 
drunk.  The  next  day,  when  I  was  not  feeling  very  well, 
a  dozen  disreputable-looking  Mexicans  came  off  to  see  me, 
and  said  I  had  invited  them  to  dinner.  Probably  I  had ; 
but  I  repudiated  the  invitation,  nevertheless.  This  was 
the  last  time  I  ever  became  intoxicated. 

From  La  Paz  we  went  to  Mazatlan.  I  went  to  a 
relojeria,  to  have  my  watch  repaired.  I  spoke  to  the 
watchmaker  in  my  best  Spanish,  and  he  answered  in  per 
fectly  good  English,  "What  do  you  say!"  I  was  so  in 
tent  on  getting  my  Spanish  right  that  I  repeated  my  ques 
tion  again  in  Spanish,  but  was  quickly  called  to  my  senses 
by  a  not  very  complimentary  remark  from  Dorn.  Dorn 
and  I  then  went  to  buy  some  Spanish  books,  in  order  to 
improve  our  Spanish.  We  could  not  find  any  book-store 
but  in  a  dry-goods  store  we  found  two  Spanish  books,  and 
only  two.  Dorn  bought  one,  and  I  bought  the  other. 
My  book  was  called  "Historia  Griega,"  which,  being 
translated,  means  "Greek  History." 

From  Mazatlan  we  went  to  Acapulco,  and  anchored 
there  in  a  tremendously  hot,  landlocked  harbor.  Holmes 
and  I  went  on  a  hunting  expedition  in  a  canoe  upon  a 
lagoon  near  by.  It  was  picturesque  in  the  highest  de 
gree.  We  spent  hours  being  paddled  by  a  native  over 
smooth,  warm  water,  unruffled  by  a  breeze,  amid  the  most 
luxuriant  vegetation  that  can  be  imagined,  flown  over  by 
birds  of  many  kinds,  but  all  of  brilliant  plumage. 

The  trip  from  Acapulco  to  San  Francisco  lasted  thirty 
days,  the  same  time  as  the  trip  from  Honolulu  to  La  Paz. 
On  the  trip  to  La  Paz  we  had  not  seen  a  single  thing  ex 
cept  the  sky  and  the  water  and  a  few  birds,  but  on  the 


34    FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

way  north  we  passed  several  vessels.  The  trip  was 
pleasant  most  of  the  time,  though  dull,  of  course,  but  it 
ended  in  a  five-days'  northwest  gale.  This  gale  not  only 
made  the  ship  roll  tremendously,  but  blew  a  cold  wind 
right  through  the  very  marrow  of  our  tropically  heated 
bones.  The  gale  ended,  however,  as  all  gales  thus  far 
have  done.  It  was  during  this  gale  that  some  one  said 
to  me,  "You  know  all  gales  have  ended  except  one."  I 
fell  into  the  trap  and  asked,  "Which  gale  was  that?" 
He  answered,  "This  one." 

At  last,  on  the  twenty-seventh  of  January,  1876,  we 
steamed  into  San  Francisco  Harbor,  exactly  a  year  after 
the  day  when  we  had  left  it.  We  saw  the  water-front 
decorated  with  flags,  a  great  many  people  on  the  wharves, 
and  a  great  many  excursion  steamers  filled  with  people 
rushing  about  the  bay.  Having  been  accustomed  for  a 
year  to  be  the  center  of  attraction  everywhere,  we  ac 
cepted  these  demonstrations  as  proper  tributes  to  our 
homecoming.  But  we  soon  found  that  they  were  given 
in  honor  of  the  arrival  of  the  City  of  Pekin,  a  brand-new 
steamer  of  the  Pacific  Mail  Company,  which  had  just 
reached  San  Francisco  after  a  trip  from  New  York 
through  the  Strait  of  Magellan. 

We  went  to  our  old  home,  alongside  the  dock  at  the 
Mare  Island  Navy-Yard,  and  proceeded  to  get  repaired 
again.  This  time,  however,  the  repairs  were  not  of  a 
very  serious  kind,  and  so  we  continued  to  live  on  board 
ship.  We  resumed  acquaintance  with  the  young  people 
of  Vallejo,  fair  and  unfair,  but  the  conditions  were  evi 
dently  different.  Before  we  had  left,  we  had  been  wholly 
inexperienced  youngsters  just  out  of  school ;  now  not  only 
were  we  older  by  a  year,  but  our  growth  had  been  forced 
by  the  hothouse  conditions  of  Honolulu  life.  Besides 
that,  we  had  then  been  just  at  the  beginning  of  our  cruise, 
whereas  now  we  were  nearing  the  end;  and  we  knew 
that  we  should  soon  be  ordered  east,  after  that  to  cruises 
in  other  parts  of  the  world.  Furthermore,  we  saw  imme 
diately  ahead  of  us  the  necessity  of  preparing  for  ex- 


THE  MIDSHIPMAN"  CRUISE  35 

animation  for  promotion  to  the  grade  of  ensign,  and  each 
felt  a  serious  doubt  as  to  whether  he  would  pass  the 
examination,  and  considerable  anxiety  as  to  how  success 
fully  he  would  pass  it,  if  he  passed  it  at  all.  The  degree 
of  success  in  passing  the  examination  was  a  very  impor 
tant  thing;  for  in  those  days  we  did  not  become  ensigns 
(in  fact,  we  were  not  finally  graduated)  until  two  years 
after  getting  our  diplomas  at  the  academy.  The  two- 
years'  cruise  as  a  midshipman  was  held  to  be  part  of  each 
man 's  academic  course,  and  the  marks  which  he  received 
on  the  examination  at  its  conclusion  were  combined  with 
the  marks  he  received  at  Annapolis  to  establish  his  stand 
ing  in  his  class  and  his  place  on  the  official  list  of  the  com 
missioned  officers  of  the  navy. 

We  were  rather  young  in  those  days,  however,  and  we 
spent  most  of  our  time  off  duty  in  pleasures  of  different 
kinds,  paying  little  heed  to  the  morrow,  until  about  the 
first  of  July,  when  an  order  came  from  Washington  to 
proceed  to  our  homes.  Although  the  order  was  expected, 
it  came  to  us  as  a.  shock.  We  suddenly  realized  that  our 
midshipman  life  was  over,  with  its  merely  partial  respon 
sibilities,  and  that  we  should  soon  have  to  take  up  the 
responsible  duties  of  commissioned  officers.  We  real 
ized,  too,  that  our  first  cruise  was  over,  and  that  the 
bright  flush  of  early  youth  had  passed,  and  we  said  good- 
by  to  the  Pensacola  and  to  our  good  friends  of  Vallejo 
with  hearts  not  wholly  light. 

The  order  to  proceed  to  our  homes  brought  each  one 
face  to  face  with  the  fact  that  he  did  not  have  the  money 
with  which  to  proceed  there.  During  the  two  years  that 
had  elapsed  since  we  had  left  the  Academy,  our  pay  had 
been  $1000  a  year,  with  thirty  cents  a  day  additional  for 
what  was  called  the  ''ration."  This  $1109.00  a  year 
could  buy  a  good  deal  more  in  those  days  than  it  can 
now,  and  it  was  enough  for  a  young  unmarried  man  to 
live  on,  especially  if  he  had  free  quarters  on  board  ship. 
But  we  had  spent  a  good  deal  in  entertaining  the  young 
ladies  of  Vallejo,  and  in  riding  horses  in  Honolulu;  so 


36    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

that  every  one  of  us  was  in  debt.  When  I  say  "us"  I 
mean  those  of  my  class,  Holmes,  Dorn,  Allderdice,  Nos- 
trand  and  myself.  We  all  had  to  telegraph  home  for 
money.  I  left  Vallejo  about  $250.00  in  debt.  I  did  not 
like  being  in  debt  at  all;  it  did  not  seem  to  harmonize 
with  the  gold  and  blue  and  the  straight  cut  of  my  uni 
form.  Fortunately,  I  was  able  to  pay  off  my  debt  in  a 
very  few  months ;  and  the  feeling  of  relief  was  so  great 
when  the  last  cent  was  paid,  that  I  resolved  never  to  get 
into  debt  again: — a  resolve  which  I  have  been  able  to 
carry  out  thus  far. 

A  pleasant  trip  across  the  continent  brought  me  to  my 
father's  home,  not  far  outside  of  Chicago.  On  the  trip 
I  became  acquainted  with  a  delightful  lady  of  the  aristo 
cratic  sort,  who  had  with  her  two  handsome  daughters, 
also  of  the  aristocratic  sort.  I  told  them  that  my  father's 
name  was  William  A.  Fiske,  and  that  he  was  rector  of  a 
church.  As  we  approached  the  town  in  which  he  lived, 
and  were  looking  out  the  window,  we  passed  a  disrepu 
table  looking  saloon,  outside  of  which  was  painted  in 
large  letters,  "W.  A.  Fiske,  Wines,  Liquors,  and  Cigars." 

Not  long  after  that  we  arrived  at  my  destined  station. 

For  some  reason,  I  was  not  expected  then,  and  no  one 
was  at  the  station  to  meet  me.  I  had  a  great  many  clubs, 
bows,  arrows,  spears,  etc.,  which  I  had  collected  in  the 
Hawaiian  Islands.  So  I  hired  a  little  wagon,  and  in  this 
wagon  I  drove  up  to  the  pretty  parsonage  with  my  ex 
traordinary  baggage. 


CHAPTER  IV 

EXAMINATION,    TYPE-WHITER,    BOAT-DETACHING   APPARATUS, 
TORPEDO    STATION,    AND    THE  PLYMOUTH 

I  REMAINED  home  about  three  months,  studying  hard 
for  my  examination.  There  were  many  distractions, 
but  though  I  permitted  myself  to  be  distracted  consider 
ably,  I  kept  to  my  task  with  fair  success.  The  transition 
from  the  life  I  had  been  leading  for  the  last  two  years 
was  sudden  and  almost  violent.  The  conditions  in  the 
quiet,  well-ordered  family  of  an  Episcopal  clergyman 
were  very  different  from  those  of  a  devil-may-care  mid 
shipman  in  Honolulu,  and  I  did  not  find  it  easy  to  adapt 
myself  at  once.  The  first  thing  that  I  noticed  was  a 
tendency  to  use  profane  language,  a  tendency  which  had 
grown  upon  me  so  gradually  that  I  had  not  noticed  it. 
I  also  found  it  difficult  to  study.  It  seemed  very  dull  to 
spend  the  afternoon  sitting  at  a  table  studying  gunnery 
or  working  out  problems  in  navigation.  For  two  years 
I  had  been  living  a  life  of  constant  action,  constant 
change,  and  I  now  found  it  almost  impossible  to  keep  at 
any  one  thing  for  half  an  hour  or  think  on  any  one  sub 
ject  for  half  that  length  of  time.  In  about  two  weeks, 
however,  I  found  that  I  had  readapted  myself  to  my 
former  life  to  a  considerable  degree,  and  in  about  a  month 
I  was  again  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  so  far  as  could  be 
seen,  simply  the  minister's  oldest  boy. 

Sometime  in  October  the  members  of  the  class,  thirty 
in  number,  reassembled  at  Annapolis.  A  rigid  examina 
tion  was  then  given  us  in  all  branches  of  our  profession. 
I  felt  rather  discouraged  with  myself,  for  I  did  not  seem 
to  do  very  well.  After  the  examination  we  were  ordered 
home.  For  some  reason  that  I  do  not  now  remember  I 

37 


38    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

went  home  by  way  of  New  York.  The  evening  after  ar 
riving  there  I  went  to  the  theater,  and  on  my  way  in  I 
bought  the  evening  newspaper.  During  one  of  the  pauses 
between  the  acts  I  glanced  through  the  newspaper,  and 
there,  to  my  amazement,  I  saw  my  own  name  as  number 
two  in  the  class.  Not  only  was  I  gratified  with  this,  but 
I  was  delighted  to  see  that  Peters  was  still  number  one. 
We  all  considered  him  the  best  man  in  the  class.  He  was 
president  of  the  class  and  the  most  popular  man,  and  the 
man  whom  we  all  expected  to  make  the  best  career.  But 
Peters  was  stricken  with  typhoid  fever  a  few  months 
later,  and  was  never  quite  the  same  afterward.  He  be 
came  a  captain  in  time,  but  he  never  had  a  captain 's  com 
mand,  because,  shortly  after  obtaining  that  rank,  he  re 
tired  voluntarily  as  commodore.  He  died  in  1917. 

I  went  home  on  * '  waiting  orders, ' '  and  stayed  there  all 
winter.  I  would  have  found  it  very  dull,  had  I  not  in 
vented  a  type-writer.  One  evening  at  Mare  Island  the 
thought  had  suddenly  occurred  to  me — why  I  cannot 
imagine — that  it  would  be  much  better  to  telegraph  in 
printed  letters  than  to  telegraph  in  dots  and  dashes.  The 
idea  seemed  so  beautiful  to  me  that  I  immediately  set 
about  devising  an  apparatus  to  accomplish  it ;  but  I  was 
confronted  at  once  with  lack  of  knowledge  as  to  whether 
an  electro-magnet  could  exert  enough  force  to  make  a 
good  print  of  a  letter  on  paper.  I  had  stood  at  the  head 
of  the  class  in  electricity,  but  I  had  had  no  practical  ex 
perience  with  electric  mechanism.  In  thinking  over  the 
question,  I  concluded  to  make  a  little  apparatus  in  which 
the  printing  should  be  done  not  by  electricity,  but  by  the 
pressure  of  the  finger ;  so  as  to  clear  up  all  the  printing 
part  of  the  problem;  and  I  got  one  of  the  machinists  on 
board  the  Pensacola  to  make  a  little  machine.  This  ma 
chine  I  kept  for  many  years.  Of  course,  before  the  ma 
chine  was  really  designed,  I  realized  that  it  might  have 
a  value  as  a  sort  of  writing-machine  without  using  elec 
tricity.  After  I  passed  my  examination,  I  took  up  the 
writing-machine  idea  in  earnest,  with  the  intention  of 


EXAMINATION,  TYPE-WRITER  39 

taking  up  the  telegraphic  machine  later.  To  my  surprise 
and  intense  disgust,  I  found  that  both  ideas  were  old; 
that  type-writers  were  already  on  the  market,  and  that 
in  all  our  large  cities  there  were  printing  telegraphs, 
which  were  used  principally  for  sending  out  quotations 
of  stocks. 

But  I  went  ahead  with  my  idea,  and  I  had  a  type-writer 
constructed,  for  which  I  made  two  applications  for  pat 
ents,  which  were  granted.  My  type-writer  did  not  work 
very  well,  but  this  did  not  discourage  me.  What  dis 
couraged  me  more  than  that  was  the  attitude  of  all  the 
men  to  whom  I  showed  my  type-writer.  They  all  said 
substantially:  "Of  course  this  doesn't  work  very  well, 
but  I  dare  say  you  could  make  it  work  all  right.  But  I 
can't  see  the  slightest  use  for  such  a  machine,  no  matter 
how  well  you  get  it  to  work,  because  it  would  be  an  insult 
to  a  man  to  write  him  a  letter  with  it." 

In  the  spring  of  1877  I  was  ordered  to  the  U.  S.  S. 
Wyoming,  then  alongside  the  dock  at  the  Washington 
Navy-Yard.  While  there  I  heard  about  Edison,  and  I 
bought  a  book  called  "Electricity  and  the  Electric  Tele 
graph,  ' '  by  Prescott,  which  I  have  in  my  library  still.  I 
began  to  study  electricity,  and  I  also  became  interested 
in  two  inventions  which  had  just  occurred  to  me.  One 
was  an  arrangement  whereby  I  thought  a  soldier  could 
hold  his  musket  more  steadily  than  he  could  without  it. 
So  I  made  a  drawing  of  my  invention  and  showed  it  to 
the  captain  of  the  ship.  He  thought  it  was  very  good, 
and  advised  me  to  submit  it,  with  an  official  letter,  to  the 
chief  of  the  bureau  of  ordnance  in  the  Navy  Department, 
Washington.  I  prepared  the  letter  and  the  drawing  very 
carefully  and  sent  them  in.  I  got  them  back  by  return 
mail,  with  the  endorsement,  "The  invention  herein  re 
ferred  to  is  neither  novel  nor  useful.  W.  N.  Jeffers, 
Chief  of  Bureau." 

About  two  weeks  after  that  I  invented  a  machine-gun, 
and  I  sent  the  drawing  and  description  of  that  to  the  same 
office.  To  my  delight,  I  got  a  long  letter  in  return  from 


40     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Commodore  Jeffers,  praising  the  scheme  in  general  and 
expressing  his  gratification  that  "a  young  officer  should 
turn  his  attention  so  seriously  and  so  intelligently  to  the 
development  of  an  arm  much  needed  in  the  service." 

By  this  time  I  had  become  interested  in  a  design,  which 
I  had  held  vaguely  for  several  years,  for  a  "boat-detach 
ing  apparatus";  that  is,  an  apparatus  by  which  a  boat 
could  be  safely  and  quickly  lowered  from  a  ship  in  a 
seaway,  and  afterward  hooked  on  and  hoisted  again.  I 
secured  the  necessary  authority,  and  had  an  apparatus 
made  at  the  Washington  Navy  Yard  and  fitted  in  a  whale- 
boat  of  the  Wyoming.  But  the  time  for  the  meeting  of 
the  annual  class  at  the  torpedo  station  in  Newport  was  at 
hand,  and  I  was  able  to  get  orders  as  a  member  of  the 
class  before  the  apparatus  was  completed.  So  I  pro 
ceeded  to  Newport,  and  I  received  later  a  copy  of  the 
report  of  the  board  which  tested  the  detaching  apparatus. 
The  report  was  very  appreciative  of  the  possibilities  of 
the  apparatus,  but  it  said  the  apparatus  required  modi 
fication,  because,  when  the  detaching-lever  was  pulled,  the 
detaching-hooks  at  both  ends  of  the  boat  caught  on  an 
obstruction  and  held  there,  with  the  result  that  the  boat 
dropped  only  about  six  inches. 

The  summer  course  at  the  torpedo  station  lasted  four 
months.  It  was  extremely  interesting  in  every  way,  and 
the  most  experienced  practical  electrician  in  the  United 
States,  Professor  Moses  G.  Farmer,  was  at  the  head  of 
the  electrical  course.  The  one  of  his  precepts  which  is 
the  most  interesting  now  was  his  mathematical  demon 
stration  that,  although  it  was  practicable  to  have  a  num 
ber  of  electric  lights  fed  by  an  electric  current,  the  lamps 
being  "in  series,"  one  after  another,  as  arc  lamps  were, 
it  was  impossible  to  have  electric  lights  fed  by  a  current 
which  went  through  them  all  "in  parallel"  or  together, 
as  gas  went  through  gas-burners.  Professor  Farmer 
proved  mathematically  that  the  system  of  lighting  by 
which  most  buildings  in  the  world  are  now  lighted  by 
incandescent  lamps  was  scientifically  impossible ! 


EXAMINATION,  TYPE-WRITER  41 

Lieutenant  Couden  was  assistant  to  Professor  Farmer 
and  our  lecturer  in  electricity.  One  day  the  commandant 
of  the  station,  Captain  Breese,  sent  for  Couden  and  in 
troduced  him  to  George  Bancroft  and  Chief-Justice 
Waite.  He  told  Couden  that  these  highly  distinguished 
gentlemen  had  done  the  station  the  honor  of  visiting  it  in 
order  that  they  might  have  explained  to  them  the  way 
in  which  two  telegraphic  despatches  could  be  made  to  go 
over  the  same  wire,  even  in  opposite  directions,  without 
interfering  with  each  other.  Couden  took  them  down  to 
the  electrical  laboratory,  where  he  had  an  electrical  bat 
tery,  telegraph  keys,  a  blackboard,  etc.  He  explained  to 
these  gentlemen  for  two  hours.  At  the  end  of  that  time 
Chief -Justice  Waite  said  he  thought  that  he  did  get  "  just 
a  kind  of  glimmer,"  but  Mr.  Bancroft  said  that  he  did 
not  get  even  a  glimmer. 

One  of  our  most  interesting  exercises  was  with  the 
Harvey  " towing  torpedo."  Half  of  the  class — that  is, 
about  fifteen  in  number — would  go  on  board  the  old 
schooner  Joseph  Henry,  and  the  other  half  would  go  on 
board  the  steam  tug  Nina.  Then  the  Nina  would  try  to 
hit  the  Joseph  Henry  with  the  torpedo,  which  the  Nina 
towed  by  a  long  steel  rope  through  the  water.  The  tor 
pedo  had,  roughly  speaking,  the  shape  of  a  boat  about 
four  feet  long  and  two  feet  deep  and  one  foot  wide ;  and 
it  had  a  rudder  screwed  permanently  over  at  such  an 
angle  that  the  torpedo  did  not  tow  directly  behind  the 
Nina,  but  about  forty-five  degrees  to  the  right,  and  about 
one  hundred  yards  distant.  Each  of  us  took  turns  in 
commanding  the  Nina  and  the  Joseph  Henry.  One  fore 
noon  I  was  on  board  the  Joseph  Henry,  when  the  Nina 
tried  to  go  across  our  bows  from  the  lee  side,  so  as  to 
drag  the  torpedo  under  our  bow.  The  officer  in  command 
of  the  Nina  miscalculated,  so  that,  instead  of  going  ahead, 
he  struck  our  jibboom,  and  he  did  not  even  then  stop  the 
Nina.  The  officer  in  command  of  the  Joseph  Henry  or 
dered  the  helm  put  down  and  he  brought  the  vessel  up 
into  the  wind  and  then  around  on  the  other  tack,  which 


42    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

was  the  proper  thing  to  do.  To  accomplish  this  maneu 
ver,  it  was  necessary  to  haul  in  the  main  sheet,  and  he 
gave  orders  to  do  so.  Nobody  jumped  to  do  so  except 
me.  While  I  was  hauling  in  the  main  sheet  I  heard  a 
call,  "Stand  from  under!"  I  looked  up,  and  saw  the 
torpedo  directly  over  me.  I  realized  the  danger,  and 
turned  to  jump  overboard;  but  the  torpedo,  the  wire  of 
which  had  become  entangled  in  our  rigging,  dropped  on 
me  before  I  could  get  away,  and  I  was  thrown  heavily  to 
the  deck  with  the  weight  of  330  pounds.  The  torpedo 
was  of  very  irregular  shape  and  had  a  number  of  sharp 
steel  corners ;  so  I  do  not  quite  see  why  I  was  not  killed. 
I  did  not  even  lose  consciousness,  but  the  others  thought 
I  was  killed,  and  the  Joseph  Henry  was  promptly  towed 
to  Newport  by  the  Nina.  I  was  not  very  badly  hurt,  and 
in  about  a  month  I  was  out  on  the  Joseph  Henry  again. 
I  was  standing  on  the  forecastle  the  first  day  after  my 
partial  recovery  when  the  two  vessels  came  together,  and 
I  realized  that  I  was  not  wholly  recovered,  for  I  became 
intensely  nervous.  To  hide  it,  I  jumped  up  on  the  bill 
board,  which  was  a  foolish  thing  to  do,  and  nearly  cost 
me  my  foot ;  for  the  Nina  picked  up  the  sharp  pee  of  our 
anchor  as  she  forged  ahead  along  our  side,  and  dropped 
it  almost  in  contact  with  my  foot. 

From  the  torpedo  station  I  was  ordered  home,  and 
afterward  to  the  U.  S.  S.  Plymouth  at  the  Navy-Yard  at 
Norfolk.  By  this  time  I  had  devised  a  modification  of 
my  detaching-apparatus.  I  succeeded  in  getting  author 
ity  to  have  an  apparatus  made  in  the  navy-yard,  and 
secured  in  a  whaleboat  of  the  Plymouth. 

Shortly  after,  we  dropped  down  to  Hampton  Roads, 
had  our  inspection  by  the  commander-in-chief,  and  then 
sailed  for  St.  Thomas  in  the  Danish  West  Indies.  The 
Plymouth  was  an  extremely  pretty  ship  of  about  1500 
tons  displacement,  with  both  steam  power  and  sail  power ; 
but  she  rolled  a  great  deal,  and  was  so  constructed  below 
the  water-line  that  it  was  almost  impossible  to  keep  her 
clean.  The  water  which  gradually  leaked  into  her,  and 


EXAMINATION,  TYPE-WRITER  43 

was  swashed  about  as  the  ship  rolled,  made  a  smell 
that  was  exceedingly  disagreeable,  especially  in  heavy 
weather,  when  we  had  to  keep  the  hatches  battened  down 
to  keep  water  from  going  below. 

Our  stay  at  St.  Thomas  was  pleasant,  though  hot. 
From  there  we  went  to  Colon,  then  called  Aspinwall,  at 
the  Atlantic  end  of  the  Panama  Railroad.  The  change 
was  not  at  all  for  the  better  so  far  as  our  comfort  was 
concerned.  At  St.  Thomas  we  had  been  in  a  pleasant, 
smooth,  land-locked  harbor,  but  at  Aspinwall  we  were  in 
a  roadstead,  where  the  ship  rolled  continually.  The 
sailors  had  a  song  of  which  a  few  words  were 

And  there  you  roll  and  roll  and  roll 
And  damn  your  eyes  and  cuss  your  soul. 

There  were  a  few  other  lines,  which  I  do  not  remember, 
but  each  stanza  ended  with 

In  Aspinhole,  in  Aspinhole. 

Aspinwall  was  certainly  a  miserable  place,  hot  and  un 
healthy  in  the  highest  degree.  Chagres  fever,  yellow 
fever,  malaria,  and  brandy-drinking  combined  to  cause 
a  frightful  mortality  and  a  general  air  of  desperation. 
I  do  not  remember  much  about  it  clearly,  but  I  remem 
ber  that  there  was  an  idea  that  bananas  and  brandy  did 
not  go  together,  and  that  one  man  is  supposed  to  have 
said  to  another,  ''You  eat  that  banana  and  drink  that 
glass  of  brandy,  and  I  '11  bet  you  a  hundred  dollars 
you  're  dead  in  five  minutes." 

In  the  steerage  mess  of  the  Plymouth  was  a  very  amus 
ing  man  named  Marbury.  I  told  the  mess  one  day  of  a 
plan  which  I  had  submitted  to  the  bureau  of  ordnance 
two  years  before,  which  I  had  thought  would  be  a  great 
improvement  over  the  clumsy  apparatus  the  navy  used 
then,  by  which  small  torpedoes  on  the  ends  of  spars  were 
shoved  out  over  the  bow  of  a  steam  launch  against  an 
enemy  ship  at  the  water-line,  and  exploded  there.  This 
was  the  plan  which  Lieutenant  Gushing  of  our  navy  had 


44    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

so  bravely  and  successfully  carried  out  against  the  rebel 
ram  Albemarle.  My  plan  was  to  have  half  a  dozen  short 
mortars  or  eprouvettes  on  each  side  of  the  steam  launch, 
which  could  be  fired  together  by  electricity  by  one  man ; 
each  eprouvette  to  have  in  it  a  shell  filled  with  dynamite 
or  other  high  explosive.  The  plan  was  to  have  the  steam 
launch  run  rapidly  past  a  ship,  about  one  hundred  feet 
distant,  and  to  fire  the  shells  at  the  ship  in  such  a  way 
that  they  would  hit  her,  drop  into  the  water,  and  explode 
as  soon  as  they  had  sunk  a  few  feet.  I  thought  this  was 
a  very  fine  plan,  and  I  still  think  that  it  was  much  better 
than  any  plan  then  used.  But  it  struck  Marbury  and  the 
rest  of  the  mess  as  very  funny,  and  occasionally  after 
ward,  in  the  evenings  after  dinner,  Marbury  would  give 
an  exhibition  of  Fiske  chained  to  the  floor  a  few  years 
later,  in  a  padded  cell,  in  a  lunatic  asylum,  clanking  his 
chains  and  yelling,  "I  'm  a  dynamite  shell  fired  from  an 
eprouvette." 

One  morning  a  party  of  us  took  the  train  and  made  the 
trip  that  none  of  us  was  ever  to  forget,  from  Aspinwall 
on  the  Atlantic  side  to  Panama  on  the  Pacific  side.  We 
proceeded  in  a  southeast  direction  through  miles  of  tropi 
cal  underbrush,  moist,  hot,  and  in  every  way  unpleasant. 
Suddenly  we  reached  elevated  ground  near  Miraflores, 
and  a  scene  of  startling  beauty  burst  upon  us.  The  view 
was  no  longer  shut  in  by  tropical  trees  and  underbrush, 
but  extended  far  over  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  embraced 
the  town  of  Panama  and  many  ships  at  anchor.  That 
night  we  slept  in  a  hotel  that  was  far  from  good,  but  which 
did  not  roll  or  thump  or  creak. 

From  Aspinwall  we  steamed  north  to  Norfolk,  and  at 
some  time  in  April  found  ourselves  again  alongside  a 
wharf  at  the  navy-yard.  During  the  trip  many  trials 
had  been  held  of  my  detaching-apparatus,  at  sea  and  in 
port,  and  they  were  so  successful  in  every  way  that  an 
extremely  favorable  report  was  made  by  a  board  of  offi 
cers,  and  forwarded  by  the  captain  with  his  approval. 
Armed  with  this  report,  I  went  to  Washington  and  called 


EXAMINATION,  TYPE-WRITER  45 

on  the  chief  of  bureau  of  equipment  of  the  Navy  Depart 
ment,  Commodore  Shufeldt.  He  told  me  that  he  was 
very  glad  indeed  that  I  had  invented  such  a  good  de 
taching-apparatus,  because  one  was  needed;  and  he  said 
he  would  have  me  ordered  to  the  navy-yard,  New  York, 
so  that  I  could  have  its  manufacture  taken  up  by  some 
manufacturing  firm.  He  said  there  was  one  other  detach 
ing-apparatus  used  in  the  navy,  invented  by  Lieutenant 
Maxwell  Wood,  and  that  he  wanted  to  try  out  his  and 
mine  in  competition  with  each  other  by  putting  each  of 
them  in  several  ships.  He  added  that  he  had  found,  from 
his  experience,  that  work  of  that  kind  could  be  much  bet 
ter  done  and  in  quicker  time  by  private  firms  than  by 
navy-yards.  " Besides,"  he  said,  "it  gives  the  inventor 
a  little  royalty ;  and  that  acts  as  a  stimulus  to  other  offi 
cers  to  invent  things.'* 


CHAPTER  V 

NEW   YOBK    NAVY- YARD,    COLORADO,   ELECTRIC   LOG  AND 
POWHATAN 

THE  commodore  bad  me  ordered  to  the  equipment  de 
partment  of  the  Navy- Yard  at  Brooklyn,  New  York, 
and  I  reported  to  the  commandant  there  in  a  few  days. 
This  was  in  the  spring  of  1878,  and  although  the  navy 
had  not  yet  got  down  as  far  as  it  had  a  few  years  later, 
it  had  sunk  to  a  very  low  ebb.  The  navy-yard  covered 
an  enormous  tract  of  ground,  on  which  there  were  a  few 
large  buildings,  and  over  which  a  general  air  of  peace- 
fulness  and  quiet  reigned.  A  few  people — officers, 
sailors,  employees,  and  watchmen — walked  about  it  lei 
surely,  and  on  Saturday  afternoons  and  Sunday  after 
noons  many  young  women  would  come  down  to  see  the 
sailors  in  the  ships. 

I  have  been  at  the  New  York  Navy- Yard  many  times 
in  the  forty  years  that  have  intervened,  and  every  Satur 
day  and  Sunday  afternoon  the  same  young  women  have 
come  there  that  came  in  1878.  At  least  they  have  seemed 
the  same  to  me.  Perhaps  my  feeling  is  like  that  which 
Caesar  is  said  to  have  expressed  when  he  soliloquized,  "I 
grow  older  every  day,  but  the  crowd  on  the  Appian  Way 
is  always  of  the  same  age." 

I  reported  to  Commander  Wiltse,  who  was  in  charge 
of  the  equipment  department,  and  I  found  that  he  had 
already  two  assistants,  Lieutenant  Boyd  and  Master  Sea- 
bury.  I  was  to  be  his  third  assistant.  The  chief  clerk's 
name,  I  think,  was  Ferguson,  and  he  was  the  kind  of  man 
that  now  is  called  efficient.  I  discovered  in  a  few  days 
that  Mr.  Ferguson  ran  the  entire  machine ;  that  the  equip 
ment  officer  signed  the  papers  which  were  put  in  front 

46 


NEW  YORK  NAVY- YARD  47 

of  him  by  Mr.  Ferguson,  and  that  the  three  assistants 
did  nothing  whatever,  because  there  was  nothing  what 
ever  for  them  to  do.  The  navy  was  almost  comatose. 
All  the  energy  and  life  that  it  had  had  when  the  Civil 
War  ended  only  thirteen  years  before  was  nearly  gone. 
The  idea  of  loyalty  and  the  sense  of  official  duty  were  as 
strong  as  ever,  but  there  was  nothing  to  do.  The  ships 
were  the  same  year  by  year,  and  so  were  the  drills.  So 
there  was  nothing  to  learn,  and  as  the  ships  were  slowly 
being  reduced  in  numbers,  there  were  more  officers  than 
the  necessities  of  each  day's  work  demanded.  Boyd, 
Seabury,  and  I  idled  away  the  days  reading  newspapers 
and  playing  *  *  mumpletipeg. " 

Separated  from  the  navy-yard  proper  by  a  channel 
perhaps  two  hundred  yards  wide  was  the  "cobdock." 
Alongside  the  cobdock  was  the  big  old  steam  frigate 
Colorado;  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  cobdock  from  the 
Colorado,  and  about  one  hundred  yards  distant,  was  the 
old  line-of-battle  ship  Vermont.  These  two  ships  to 
gether  were  under  the  command  of  Captain  Gherardi, 
who  had  been  my  captain  in  the  Pensacola,  and  were 
used  as  receiving  ships.  I  received  permission  from  the 
commandant  to  live  on  board  the  Colorado.  There  I  had 
a  comfortable  state-room  and  lived  in  the  wardroom 
mess.  I  stayed  there  for  about  ten  months,  and  I  have 
never  had  a  pleasanter  time.  The  mess  was  composed 
of  about  fifteen  men,  including  a  chaplain,  two  doctors, 
a  marine  officer,  two  engineers,  and  eight  or  nine  line 
officers.  As  we  were  all  in  good  health,  had  little  to  do, 
and  had  had  experiences  all  over  the  world  which  \ve 
could  talk  about,  we  constituted  a  delightful  club.  There 
was  some  drinking,  but  it  was  almost  wholly  of  beer,  and 
no  one  ever  became  intoxicated.  For  the  most  part  we 
spent  the  days  on  board,  and  in  the  evenings  we  would 
sally  forth  to  make  calls  in  New  York  or  Brooklyn. 

Going  to  New  York  was  rather  a  serious  thing  in  those 
days,  because  one  had  to  go  in  a  slow  horse-car  to  the 
Fulton  Ferry,  usually  wait  about  five  minutes  for  the 


48    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

next  boat  to  start,  then  take  the  trip  across,  which  lasted 
about  seven  minutes,  and  then  go  in  a  horse-car  or  stage 
in  New  York  to  our  place  of  destination.  Coming  back 
was  a  still  more  serious  undertaking,  especially  in  cold 
weather,  because  the  stages  did  not  run  very  close  to 
gether,  and  neither  did  the  ferry-boats.  But  in  those 
days  people  knew  nothing  about  automobiles  or  tele 
phones  or  Brooklyn  bridges,  and  they  were  not  made 
unhappy  by  slow  transportation  and  communication,  be 
cause  that  was  what  they  were  accustomed  to. 

In  accordance  with  the  suggestion  of  Commodore  Shu- 
feldt,  I  looked  about  for  a  manufacturer  to  supply  my 
detaching-apparatus  to  the  bureau  of  equipment,  and  I 
soon  found  a  firm  on  Dey  Street,  whom  I  will  call  "Smith 
Brothers, ' '  because  that  was  not  their  name.  They  made 
a  number  of  apparatus,  for  which  I  got  a  royalty  of 
$12.50  each;  but  in  less  than  a  year  I  discovered  that 
they  were  not  putting  good  metal  into  the  apparatus,  and 
so  I  took  advantage  of  a  clause  in  the  contract  to  close 
my  agreement  with  them  at  the  end  of  the  year.  Then 
I  made  a  present  of  my  patent  to  the  bureau  of  equip 
ment.  Then  a  curious  thing  happened,  in  that  the  de 
partment  soon  ceased  the  plan  of  putting  one  apparatus 
of  mine  and  one  of  Wood's  into  each  ship,  and  put  only 
those  of  Wood,  which  wer-e  made  by  an  outside  manu 
facturer.  For  some  reason  that  I  do  not  know,  the 
navy-yards  began  to  make  my  apparatus  again  a  few 
years  later,  and  to  put  it  into  ships,  a  procedure  which 
they  continued  for  a  few  years  and  then  stopped  again. 

The  firm  of  Smith  Brothers  was  composed  of  two  men 
who  were  brothers,  but  who  were  constantly  quarreling 
with  each  other.  I  never  knew  them  to  agree  at  any  time 
except  one  afternoon  when,  to  my  surprise,  I  found  them 
in  agreement  in  roundly  berating  a  man  who  was  talking 
with  them.  When  this  man  went  out  I  said,  "Who  is 
that?"  and  one  of  them  answered,  "That  's  our  brother." 

I  now  became  interested  in  an  invention  which  I  made, 
which  I  called  an  electric  log,  whereby  a  ship  would  tow 


NEW  YORK  NAVY- YARD  49 

a  sort  of  propeller  by  an  electric  wire ;  and  every  time  the 
propeller  made  a  revolution  it  would  actuate  a  mechanism 
on  board  the  ship,  which  at  the  end  of  every  tenth  of  a 
mile  would  make  an  indication  on  a  dial.  I  made  some 
preliminary  experiments  at  my  own  expense,  which  were 
so  successful  that  the  bureau  of  navigation  of  the  Navy 
Department  allotted  me  a  small,  but  sufficient,  sum  of 
money  with  which  to  continue  the  experiments.  I  worked 
on  this  matter  for  two  or  three  years. 

One  evening  Lieutenant  Boyd  invited  me  to  dinner  at 
his  house  in  New  York.  He  had  married  a  wealthy  young 
woman,  and  had  a  very  attractive  residence.  There  was 
only  one  other  guest,  Mr.  Park  Benjamin,  a  classmate  of 
Boyd's,  who  had  resigned,  and  who  was  then  editor  of 
The  Scientific  American,  though  he  was  only  twenty- 
eight  years  old.  I  have  never  been  so  fascinated  by  any 
body  in  my  life  as  I  was  that  evening  by  Mr.  Benjamin. 
He  was  by  far  the  most  brilliant  man  I  had  ever  met,  and 
I  was  carried  away  by  his  wit  and  epigrams  and  by  his 
amazing  knowledge  of  everything,  it  seemed  to  me,  that 
there  was  to  know. 

A  few  days  later  I  called  on  him  at  The  Scientific 
'American  offices,  and  told  him  that  I  wanted  to  resign 
from  the  navy,  because  there  was  no  chance  in  it  of  hav 
ing  any  sort  of  career  of  any  kind.  I  told  him  I  was 
willing  to  do  anything  to  get  a  start ;  for  instance,  to  go 
on  The  Scientific  American  in  any  capacity  whatever, 
including  that  of  office  boy.  Benjamin  told  me  that  there 
was  no  chance  anywhere  for  anybody  except  the  chance 
to  work  like  the  devil;  and  that  I  had  a  good  job,  and  had 
better  hold  on  to  it  with  both  hands. 

That  summer  there  was  a  small  epidemic  of  yellow 
fever  at  the  yards.  As  I  recollect  it,  nobody  ever  found 
out  where  it  came  from.  Yellow  fever  was  rife  in  the 
West  Indies  at  that  time,  and  the  very  general  opinion 
was  that  somebody  had  brought  the  germs  to  the  navy- 
yard  from  the  West  Indies  in  his  clothing. 

While  in  the  Colorado,  the  idea  occurred  to  me  that,  if 


50    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

a  ship  would  tow  a  small  metal  plate,  secured  at  a  certain 
angle  to  the  towing-line,  the  plate  would  gradually  de 
scend  below  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  if  the  water  was 
shallow,  it  could  be  made  to  strike  the  bottom,  and  give  an 
alarm-signal  on  board  ship.  As  with  most  of  my  inven 
tions,  I  never  got  the  opportunity  to  develop  it ;  but  it  was 
brought  out  later  under  the  name  of  the  "sentry  lead," 
and  used  for  many  years,  until  Sir  William  Thomson's 
sounding-machine  was  perfected.  One  day  I  went  into 
the  office  of  the  commandant  of  the  navy-yard,  and  ex 
plained  my  scheme,  and  asked  permission  to  use  the  navy- 
yard  tug  to  try  it.  The  commandant  said,  * '  No. ' '  A  few 
days  later  I  was  ordered  to  go  with  him  to  make  an  offi 
cial  call  on  a  French  flag-ship,  anchored  near  the  Bat 
tery.  I  went  with  the  commandant  in  the  tug,  and  we 
towed  his  barge  astern;  so  that,  when  we  got  near  the 
French  flag-ship,  the  commandant  could  get  into  his 
barge  and  be  pulled  to  the  flag-ship  by  the  sailors  in  the 
barge.  When  we  arrived  at  the  proper  place,  I  had  the 
tug  stopped ;  and  I  told  the  coxswain  of  the  barge  to  come 
alongside  the  tug.  The  coxswain  was  very  lubberly  about 
doing  it ;  and  for  this  reason,  and  because  I  was  in  bad 
humor  at  having  to  make  the  trip  with  the  commandant, 
I  gave  the  coxswain  my  opinion  about  his  seamanship 
in  real  old  navy  style,  with  a  few  expletives  as  seasoning. 
Just  as  I  finished  my  remarks,  I  realized,  to  my  horror, 
that  the  commandant  was  standing  at  my  left  elbow.  He 
put  his  hand  on  my  shoulder,  with  a  little  pat,  and  said, 
"Mr.  Fiske,  you  may  have  the  tug  whenever  you  want 
it." 

That  autumn  Seabury  and  I  tried  to  invent  an  instru 
ment  by  which  we  could  measure  the  altitude  of  the  sun 
when  the  horizon  could  not  be  seen.  That  is,  we  tried 
to  invent  an  "artificial  horizon."  We  made  two  instru 
ments,  one  in  which  a  pendulum  was  used,  and  the  other 
in  which  a  spirit  level  was  used.  We  had  spent  nearly 
all  our  spare  money  on  this  when  Seabury  told  me  one 
morning  that  he  had  been  at  dinner  the  night  before  at 


NEW  YORK  NAVY- YARD  51 

the  house  of  a  very  prominent  patent  lawyer,  to  whom 
he  had  explained  our  scheme ;  and  that  the  patent  lawyer 
had  then  told  him  that  he  had  better  not  spend  another 
cent  or  another  minute  of  time  on  it,  because  it  was  scien 
tifically  wrong  in  principle.  He  told  Seabury  that  hun 
dreds  of  inventors  had  tried  the  same  thing,  but  that  it 
would  never  work  on  board  of  a  ship  because  it  would  be 
affected  not  only  by  gravity,  but  by  any  change  in  veloc 
ity  and  by  the  rolling  and  pitching.  For  instance,  if  a 
glass  of  water  were  moved  horizontally  on  a  table,  the 
level  of  the  water  would  be  disturbed  even  though  the 
angle  of  the  glass  were  not  changed.  Now  the  interest 
ing  part  of  this  matter  is  not  so  much  this  particular  inci 
dent,  as  the  fact  that,  during  the  forty  years  that  have 
intervened,  inventions  embodying  the  same  erroneous 
idea  have  continually  been  brought  to  my  attention.  Al 
most  exactly  forty  years  after  my  conversation  with  Sea- 
bury,  a  man  taking  the  scientific  course  at  Yale  Univer 
sity,  and  in  the  senior  year,  submitted  elaborate  draw 
ings  to  me  based  on  the  same  old  misconception. 

On  the  first  of  January  four  of  us  concluded  to  make 
New  Year's  calls  in  Brooklyn  and  New  York,  and  in  order 
to  do  so  with  becoming  splendor,  we  decided  to  array  our 
selves  in  full-dress  uniform.  Early  in  the  afternoon  we 
called  on  the  handsome  daughter  of  Medical  Inspector 
Bloodgood  at  the  Brooklyn  Hospital,  and  were  much 
gratified  to  receive  invitations  from  her  to  attend  a  "ger- 
man, ' '  or  cotillion,  which  she  was  about  to  give,  and  which 
I  was  then  asked  to  lead.  The  german  was  held  in  due 
course,  and  there  I  met  an  extremely  pretty  girl  with 
beautiful  red  hair,  named  Miss  Josephine  Harper,  a 
daughter  of  one  of  the  firm  of  Harper  &  Brothers.  The 
hair  of  this  pretty  lady  is  now  somewhat  gray,  and  she 
has  been  my  wife  for  six  and  thirty  years. 

The  following  February,  I  was  ordered  to  the  United 
States  Ship  Powhatan,  then  at  the  Norfolk  Navy- Yard. 
Just  as  I  was  leaving  the  Colorado,  little  Walter  Gher- 
ardi,  now  a  captain  in  the  navy,  came  on  deck,  dragging 


52    FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  KEAB-ADMIRAL 

by  a  string  the  type-writer  which  had  cost  me  so  many 
hours  of  thought  and  so  many  hundred  dollars. 

I  went  to  Norfolk  in  a  boat  from  Washington,  and  in 
the  early  forenoon  I  found  myself  standing  in  the  bow  of 
the  boat  looking  ahead  toward  Norfolk,  and  especially 
towards  the  Powhatan,  which  I  could  discern  at  anchor 
a  few  miles  ahead.  Alongside  of  me  I  saw  a  handsome 
elderly  gentleman,  whom  I  recognized  as  Captain  Fille- 
brown,  her  commanding  officer.  I  introduced  myself  to 
him,  and  found  him  very  courteous  and  pleasant.  He 
was  talking  to  me  in  an  agreeable  way  when  suddenly  he 
stopped,  and  looked  at  his  ship  with  an  intense  stare. 
Then  he  grasped  my  arm  and  exclaimed  excitedly: 
* '  What  's  that  damn  fool  been  doing  now !  I  left  the  ship 
only  a  week  ago,  and  the  masts  were  white  and  the  yards 
were  black;  and  now  he  has  painted  them  all  yellow!" 

I  found,  after  getting  on  board,  that  the  captain  and 
executive  officer  disagreed  professionally  about  almost 
everything;  and  that  every  time  the  captain  went  away 
for  a  few  days,  leaving  the  executive  officer  in  command, 
the  executive  officer  would  take  advantage  of  the  oppor 
tunity  to  make  all  sorts  of  changes  to  suit  his  own  ideas. 
The  captain  was  a  delightful,  kindly  old  gentleman,  but 
not  burning  up  with  energy;  whereas  the  executive  offi 
cer,  Lieutenant-Commander  McCalla,  was  a  man  who 
even  in  those  days  continually  used  the  word  " efficient," 
was  very  efficient  himself,  and  was  determined  that  every 
body  in  the  Powhatan  should  be  efficient,  including  the 
captain.  In  those  days  the  printed  regulations  were  few 
and  not  very  clearly  expressed.  Every  ship  was  a  little 
world  by  itself,  and  was  regulated  almost  wholly  by  the 
captain,  though  in  some  cases  conditions  occurred  like 
those  in  the  Powhatan,  when  the  captain  was  indolent  and 
the  executive  officer  energetic.  Then  things  became  very 
interesting  and  sometimes  amusing. 

Mr.  McCalla  became  much  interested  in  my  electric  log. 
The  first  time  I  tried  it  he  came  on  deck  to  see  it.  I  low 
ered  the  propeller  by  its  wire,  and  some  other  kind  of 


THE  POWHATAN  53 

small  rope  with  it,  the  precise  arrangement  of  which  I  do 
not  recollect.  The  wire  and  the  rope  ran  out  together 
at  high  speed,  and  shortly  after  the  propeller  reached 
the  water  they  began  to  twist  up  together  in  a  remark 
able  fashion,  and  the  wire  and  the  rope  became  entangled 
with  our  feet.  McCalla  sang  out  lustily,  and  a  sailor 
came  up  with  a  battle  ax  and  cut  the  wire  and  rope,  and 
permitted  us  to  extricate  our  feet.  McCalla  then  walked 
away  without  making  any  complimentary  remark,  and 
I  did  not  try  this  particular  invention  again  for  a  con 
siderable  time. 

The  Powhatan  was  an  old  side-wheeler  that  had  been 
used  in  Commodore  Perry's  visit  to  Japan,  and  it  was 
the  most  comfortable  old  tub  in  the  service.  Everybody 
knew  she  was  not  safe,  and  about  once  a  year  the  Navy 
Department  ordered  her  to  be  put  out  of  commission. 
Then  loud  protests  would  go  up  from  the  admiral  and 
the  captain,  reinforced  by  reports  from  naval  construc 
tors  to  the  effect  that  she  would  last  another  year;  and 
the  department  would  rescind  the  order.  Shortly  before 
I  joined,  the  old  ship  had  almost  gone  down  in  an  ordinary 
gale.  But  the  dangers  were  soon  forgotten,  and  the  com 
forts  of  the  old  floating  club-house  sufficed  to  keep  her 
from  the  junk-heap. 

Naval  officers  in  those  days  were  accustomed  mostly 
to  work  out  in  deep  water,  and  were  not  one  tenth  as 
skilful  in  coastwise  navigation  as  they  are  now.  One 
beautiful  afternoon  we  were  going  down  Chesapeake 
Bay,  and  it  became  necessary  to  go  around  a  buoy  that 
was  placed  at  the  southeast  end  of  York  Spit.  It  was 
necessary  to  pass  the  buoy  in  such  a  way  that  it  would  be 
on  our  starboard,  or  right  hand :  if  we  tried  to  pass  it  in 
such  a  way  that  it  would  be  on  our  left  hand,  we  would 
run  aground  on  the  spit,  which  extended  over  toward  the 
mainland.  In  this  emergency  the  captain  took  charge. 
He  stood  on  the  hurricane-deck  with  a  chart  in  his  hand. 
The  procedure  was  as  follows:  The  captain  would  say 

Starboard"  to  the  executive  officer;  the  executive  offi- 


< « 


54    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

cer  would  say  '" Starboard"  to  the  navigator;  the  navi 
gator  would  say  " Starboard"  to  the  officer  of  the  deck; 
the  officer  of  the  deck  would  say  "  Starboard"  to  the  as 
sistant  officer  of  the  deck,  who  in  this  case  was  Ensign 
Fiske;  Ensign  Fiske  would  shout  " Starboard"  to  Ensign 
Walling,  who  stood  alongside  the  quartermaster  at  the 
wheel  on  the  quarter-deck;  Ensign  Walling  would  say 
11  Starboard"  to  the  quartermaster;  the  quartermaster 
would  say  ''Starboard"  to  the  man  at  the  wheel,  and  then 
the  man  at  the  wheel  wrould  put  the  helm  astarboard. 

This  performance  continued  for  a  considerable  time 
that  bright  and  sunny  afternoon,  until  a  minute  or  so 
after  the  captain  had  given  the  order  "Port,"  and  the 
order  had  passed  down  the  chain,  and  the  helm  had  been 
put  aport.  But  a  minute  or  so  after  he  gave  the  order 
"Port,"  bang,  bump,  and  we  knew  we  had  run  ashore  on 
the  spit  that  connected  the  buoy  with  the  mainland.  How 
this  result  had  been  achieved  I  have  never  been  able  to 
ascertain. 

We  backed  as  hard  as  we  could,  and  "rolled  ship"  by 
making  the  men  sally  from  one  side  to  the  other,  but 
without  avail.  Then  we  carried  an  anchor  out  astern, 
with  a  hawser  to  the  ship,  and  put  the  hawser  around  the 
capstan.  Then  the  engines  backed  hard,  and  the  men 
hove  around  on  the  capstan,  but  all  to  no  purpose.  Then 
the  captain  sent  a  boat  ashore  with  a  telegram  to  Wash 
ington,  asking  for  assistance.  Next  day  or  the  day  after 
lighters  came  down  from  Washington.  Then  we  worked 
all  day  and  well  into  the  night  getting  out  guns  so  as  to 
lighten  the  ship.  Finally,  after  nearly  three  days  of 
working  and  hauling  on  ropes,  mostly  in  the  rain,  we 
got  the  ship  off  again. 

After  getting  our  guns  back  on  board,  we  steamed  down 
to  Hampton  Roads  and  anchored  there.  Anchored  very 
near  us  was  another  ship,  though  which  one  I  do  not  re 
member.  At  that  time  signaling  in  the  navy,  especially 
in  the  night-time,  was  an  undeveloped  art.  At  night  the 
principal  means  was  by  waving  back  and  forth,  accord- 


THE  POWHATAN  55 

ing  to  a  preconcerted  code,  a  lamp  that  burned  oil. 
This  was  very  difficult,  especially  at  sea;  and  when  the 
ship  was  rolling  and  the  wind  was  blowing  hard,  it  was 
virtually  impossible.  About  this  time  Lieutenant  Very 
of  our  navy  invented  the  so-called  "Very  Signals,"  which 
are  still  used  in  all  navies,  and  which  are  very  much  like 
Eoman  candles,  except  that  the  "stars"  are  projected 
from  pistols.  This  means  of  signaling  is  very  good  in 
some  ways,  especially  when  long-distance  signaling  is 
required;  but  it  was  very  slow  then,  and,  for  reasons 
which  it  would  take  some  time  to  explain,  was  liable  to 
great  errors.  One  night  the  Powhatan  signaled  some 
message  to  the  ship  near  us.  It  was  not  really  neces 
sary  to  signal,  because  the  night  was  so  calm  that  a  man 
with  a  good  voice  could  have  shouted  the  message,  and 
it  would  have  been  heard  on  board  the  other  ship.  But 
signaling  is  often  done  for  purposes  of  practice,  and  so 
the  message  was  signaled  by  the  Very  Signals.  The 
surprising  answer  came  back,  "Our  commander  is  dead." 
So  the  Potvhatan  again  signaled  the  same  message  as  be 
fore.  To  this  a  long-drawn-out  answer  came  back,  "Our 
commander  is  ill."  The  Powhatan  again  repeated  the 
original  message,  and  the  answer  came  back,  "Our  com 
mander  is  absent. "  As  more  than  two  hours  had  already 
been  consumed,  a  little  dinghy  was  despatched  with  a 
note,  explaining  what  the  message  was,  and  asking  what 
the  answer  had  been  intended  to  be.  The  dinghy  re 
turned  in  ten  minutes  with  a  note  saying  that  the  an 
swer  returned  each  time  had  been,  "I  do  not  under 
stand." 

This  experience  gave  me  an  idea  about  signaling,  which 
I  explained  to  Mr.  McCalla,  and  to  try  which  I  secured  his 
permission  to  make  a  crude  apparatus.  My  idea,  as  I 
explained  it  to  him,  was  to  put  a  lamp  behind  an  aper 
ture  which  could  be  closed  and  opened  by  a  shutter,  and 
to  operate  the  shutter  by  the  hand  in  accordance  with  a 
preconcerted  code;  so  that,  if  the  beam  of  light  were 
directed  toward  any  point,  a  man  at  that  point  would 


56    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

see  a  number  of  flashes,  which  he  could  read  just  as  a 
telegraph  operator  reads  a  telegraph-sounder.  For  the 
purpose  of  ship  use,  my  idea  was  to  put  the  lantern  in 
a  box,  and  support  the  box  in  front  of  an  operator  by  a 
strap  over  the  shoulders.  We  arrived  at  Annapolis 
shortly  afterward,  and  I  got  permission  to  take  my  lamp 
and  box  a  couple  of  miles  away  from  the  ship  in  a 
dinghy,  and  to  signal  from  there  to  the  ship.  So  I  went 
out  and  signaled  toward  the  ship.  It  seemed  to  me  that 
the  scheme  worked  very  nicely,  and  I  fancied  that  the 
people  on  board  must  be  pleased,  to  see  what  an  effi 
cient  system  of  signaling  had  been  devised.  But  I  found 
on  my  return  that  nobody  had  taken  the  slightest  in 
terest  in  it,  although  they  had  seen  the  flashes  plainly,  and 
that  "Fiske  and  his  soap-box"  had  been  a  subject  of  great 
merriment.  The  idea  was  carried  out  afterward,  how 
ever,  and  is  now  used  in  all  navies  in  numberless  forms. 

From  Hampton  Roads  we  went  to  Norfolk,  and  an 
chored  perhaps  a  mile  from  the  navy-yard.  One  after 
noon  the  executive  officer  sent  for  me  and  told  me  to 
take  charge  of  a  steam  launch  with  a  large  scow  in  tow, 
which  was  then  alongside  of  the  starboard  gangway;  to 
proceed  with  them  to  the  navy-yard;  to  hoist  out  of  the 
hold  of  the  old  ship  Pawnee  a  large  water-tank,  and  to 
bring  the  water-tank  to  the  PowJiatan.  I  got  the  tank 
out  of  the  hold  without  much  difficulty  by  the  aid  of  a 
derrick  and  a  dozen  sailors,  and  lowered  it  into  the  scow. 
The  tank  had  a  hole  in  the  top  called  a  "manhole,"  which 
was,  roughly  speaking,  an  ellipse  in  shape,  about  eighteen 
inches  long  and  nine  inches  wide.  Noting  that  the  man 
hole-plate  was  not  over  the  manhole,  and  seeing  a  man 
hole-plate  lying  on  the  floor  of  the  hold  where  the  tank 
had  been,  I  took  the  manhole  plate  back  to  the  ship  also. 

The  next  morning  I  was  called  very  early  with  the 
disquieting  information  that  the  executive  officer  wished 
to  see  me  on  the  quarter-deck  immediately.  I  went  there 
at  once,  and  saluted' the  executive  officer,  who  returned 
the  salute.  Then  the  following  conversation  ensued. 


THE  POWHATAN  57 

"Good  morning,  Mr.  Fiske." 

"Good  morning,  sir." 

"Did  you  bring  that  tank  back  to  the  ship?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Did  you  bring  that  manhole-plate  also?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Put  the  manhole-plate  over  the  manhole." 

I  compared  the  size  of  the  two  with  my  eye,  and  sa\\ 
that  the  manhole-plate  was  about  half  the  size  of  the 
manhole  which  it  was  designed  to  cover;  so  I  said,  "It  is 
too  small,  sir." 

"Take  the  steam  launch  immediately,  sir,  and  get  a 
manhole-plate  of  the  correct  size." 

"Aye,  aye,  sir." 

We  proceeded  from  Norfolk  on  a  cruise  around  the 
island  of  Cuba.  I  do  not  remember  much  about  it  ex 
cept  that  it  was  intensely  hot,  that  we  cruised  very  slowly 
indeed,  about  four  knots  an  hour,  and  that  there  was  al 
most  nothing  whatever  to  do.  There  were  a  pleasant  lot 
of  us,  however,  in  the  steerage, — about  a  dozen, — and 
we  whiled  away  the  hours  in  "chucking  dice"  for  beer, 
and  then  drinking  the  beer.  Previous  to  starting  out, 
each  of  us  had  subscribed  a  little  money,  and  with  the 
aggregate  amount  we  bought  some  white  enamel  paint 
and  some  gold  and  blue  and  red  paint  also.  Then  we 
transformed  ourselves  into  artists,  and  painted  that 
steerage  in  the  most  wonderful  way.  The  crowd  of  fel 
lows  in  that  steerage  at  that  time  was  the  most  united, 
joyous  lot  of  young  men  I  was  ever  with.  It  would  be 
invidious  to  compare  one  wifh  another,  but  the  man  who 
was  the  most  popular  was  the  young  doctor,  Daniel 
Guiteras,  who  united  with  a  boyish  and  delightful  buoy 
ancy  an  ability  to  sing  pretty  Spanish  songs,  and  the 
extraordinary  talent  of  imitating  a  brass-band  with  his 
mouth. 

Our  tiresome  trip  came  to  an  end,  as  tiresome  trips 
always  have  done,  and  we  soon  found  ourselves  at  anchor 
off  West  Twenty-Third  Street,  New  York.  In  those  days 


58    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  river  was  not  so  full  as  it  is  now,  and  many  sail-boats 
used  to  go  back  and  forth  across  its  surface,  especially 
on  Sunday  afternoons.  One  Sunday  afternoon  when  the 
breeze  was  fresh,  a  pleasure-boat,  coming  near  the  Pow- 
Ifiatan,  capsized,  and  dumped  four  women  and  three  men 
into  the  water.  The  tide  was  running  swiftly,  but  we 
got  our  steam  launch  to  them  quickly,  and  brought  them 
all  on  board  the  Powhatan.  A  wet  and  frightened  set 
they  were.  We  put  each  one  of  them  into  the  bunk  of 
some  officer  who  had  gone  ashore,  and  sent  their  clothes 
down  into  the  fire-room,  to  be  dried  by  the  heat  of  the 
furnaces  under  the  boilers. 

Not  long  after  that  we  were  coaling  ship.  About  half 
past  nine  one  forenoon  we  had  just  discharged  one 
lighter ;  and  it  was  lying  alongside  the  port  side,  when  I 
was  told  to  tow  it  ashore  by  our  steam  launch  to  a  dock 
in  Hoboken  and  secure  it  there.  As  the  wind  was  blow 
ing  fresh,  and  the  tide  was  running  strong  toward  the 
southward,  another  launch  was  called  for  from  the  Swa- 
tara,  near  by.  The  launch  came  promptly,  and  Ensign 
Brumby  was  in  charge.  Brumby  was,  years  afterward, 
the  flag  lieutenant  of  Admiral  Dewey,  and  it  was  he  who 
first  hoisted  the  flag  of  the  United  States  over  the  Philip 
pine  Islands  at  Manila. 

Brumby  was  junior  to  me,  so  I  took  charge.  I  secured 
the  Powhatan' s  steam  launch  at  the  forward  end  of  the 
lighter,  and  the  Swatara's  at  the  rear  end,  and  told 
Brumby  to  stand  on  the  scow  abreast  of  his  launch,  while 
I  stood  abreast  of  mine.  Then  we  cast  off,  and  away  we 
went.  The  wind  was  blowing  half  a  gale,  and  the  lighter 
was  so  light  and  so  high,  that  it  acted  somewhat  like  a 
leaf  on  the  ground.  We  waltzed  around  on  the  surface 
of  the  river  in  the  most  bewildering  way,  going  ahead, 
then  sidewise,  and  then  back,  turning  to  the  right,  and 
then  reversing,  all  at  the  whim  of  the  wind,  restrained 
by  whatever  force  our  little  launches  could  exert.  At 
one  period  I  saw  just  below  us  the  daintiest  possible  white 
steam  yacht,  with  booms  rigged  out  both  sides,  and  a  boat 


THE  POWHATAN  59 

at  each  boom;  and  in  my  mind's  eye  I  saw  my  monstrous 
lighter  smashing  the  yacht  up  like  kindling  wood,  and 
being  smashed  itself,  and  Brumby  and  me,  with  our  steam 
launches,  involved  in  a  general  ruin.  But  by  means  of 
backing  with  one  steam  launch,  and  going  ahead  with  the 
other,  we  managed  just  to  miss  the  yacht,  and  then  to 
turn  round  and  round,  and  drift  past  the  yacht  mean 
while,  to  the  evident  amazement  of  the  people  on  board 
of  it. 

Shortly  after  this  I  was  detached  and  ordered  home, 
and  I  again  made  the  violent  transition  from  life  in  the 
steerage  of  a  man-of-war  to  the  sober  quiet  of  a  parson 
age. 

I  spent  most  of  my  time  there  in  the  daytime,  as  I  had 
always  done,  in  my  father's  library.  He  had  a  good 
library,  and  I  found  there  that  peculiar  and  satisfying 
companionship  with  the  great  and  good  people  of  the 
past  and  present  that  can  be  found  nowhere,  except  in 
a  library. 

As  the  days  went  by  there,  I  thought  a  great  deal  about 
the  most  conspicuous  figure  in  the  Powhatan,  the  execu 
tive  officer,  Lieutenant-Commander  McCalla.  We  all 
hated  him  when  I  left,  but  I  began  to  see  that  the  prin 
cipal  reason  was  that  McCalla  had  a  much  higher  ideal  of 
duty  than  we  had  and  a  much  clearer  view  of  what  a 
navy  ouerht  to  be.  In  later  years  all  officers  came  to 
realize  this,  and  to  realize  also  that,  despite  certain  de 
fects  of  character  and  an  undue  arbitrariness,  McCalla 
was  a  man  far  in  advance  of  his  time. 


CHAPTER  VI 

LEAD-PENCIL,    TALLAPOOSA,    SARATOGA,   MABKIAGE, 
ELECTRICAL   ENGINEERING 

I  STAYED  at  home  about  three  months,  passing  the 
time  agreeably,  but  very  quietly  indeed.  About  the 
first  of  October  I  realized  that  I  was  not  gaining  much 
professional  experience,  and  so  I  applied  for  orders  to 
sea.  In  those  days  there  were  not  enough  ships  in  com 
mission  to  employ  many  officers,  and  the  nearest  to  sea 
that  I  could  get  was  the  receiving  ship  Colorado,  aboard 
of  which  I  had  lived  before,  and  which  was  still  moored 
to  the  wharf  at  the  navy-yard  in  New  York. 

Captain  Gherardi  was  still  on  board  with  his  family, 
which  consisted  of  a  delightful  wife  and  two  fine  boys, 
Bancroft  and  Walter.  Bancroft  became  an  electrical 
engineer,  and  has  been  for  many  years  now  in  charge  of 
all  the  telephones  of  Brooklyn ;  Walter  is  captain  in  the 
navy.  About  the  time  that  I  rejoined  the  Colorado,  Mrs. 
Gherardi  told  me  that  at  dinner  the  night  before  Ban 
croft  had  said  to  his  younger  brother:  "You  ought  not 
eat  up  all  the  dessert,  Walter.  You  ought  to  save  some 
for  Bridget,  because  she  will  die  first."  Bridget  had 
been  the  nurse  of  Mrs.  Gherardi  when  she  was  a  child, 
and  had  afterward  been  the  nurse  to  Mrs.  Gherardi 's 
children.  A  few  years  after  the  time  of  the  admonition 
given  by  Bancroft  to  his  brother,  his  prophecy  was  ful 
filled,  and  Bridget  died.  She  left  five  thousand  dollars 
to  Bancroft  and  a  like  amount  to  Walter,  the  savings  of  a 
lifetime. 

While  on  board  the  Powhatan  I  had  invented  two  kinds 
of  mechanical  lead-pencils  and  secured  patents  on  them. 
Eberhard  Faber  now  undertook  the  manufacture  of  both 

60 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     61 

lead-pencils ;  at  my  suggestion  one  was  named  the  ' '  Cito- 
graphic ' '  and  the  other  the  * '  Monitor. ' '  The  Citographic 
was  put  on  the  market  first,  but  was  very  speedily  taken 
off,  because  of  an  injunction  secured  by  the  American 
Lead  Pencil  Company  on  the  perfectly  correct  ground 
that  it  infringed  the  claims  of  a  patent  which  I  had  not 
known  about,  but  which  covered  the  well-known  lead- 
pencil  in  which  a  lead  moves  freely  in  a  tube,  and  is 
clamped  and  undamped  by  operating  a  spring  with  the 
finger.  With  the  consent  of  Mr.  Faber,  I  sold  my  patent 
to  the  American  Lead  Pencil  Company  for  the  price  of 
the  patent  and  attorney's  fees.  The  Monitor  lead-pencil 
came  along  later,  and  it  at  first  promised  to  be  a  tre 
mendous  success,  for  it  sold  at  an  increasing  rate  during 
the  first  three  months,  at  the  end  of  which  my  royalty 
was  a  thousand  dollars.  Mr.  Faber  was  much  encour 
aged,  and  started  to  construct  the  machines  to  get  the 
pencils  out  in  large  numbers,  when  suddenly  the  sales 
fell  flat,  for  the  excellent  reason  that  it  had  been  found 
that  if  anybody  dropped  a  Monitor  lead-pencil,  the  lead 
would  break.  No  way  was  ever  found  to  rectify  the  diffi 
culty,  and  the  people  soon  afterward  forgot  about  the 
Monitor  lead-pencil. 

During  the  previous  year  and  a  half  I  had  gone  ahead, 
whenever  an  opportunity  offered,  with  my  electric  log; 
and  sometime  in  the  autumn  I  secured  permission  to 
make  a  trip  in  the  old  side-wheel  steamer  Tallapoosa, 
which  then  went  up  and  down  the  coast  carrying  navy 
freight  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  McEitchie,  an 
officer  who  had  come  into  the  navy  during  the  Civil  War. 
McEitchie  was  an  excellent  seaman  and  a  fine  man  in 
every  way,  but  he  was  a  little  excitable.  A  few  months 
before  this  time,  when  alongside  of  the  wharf  at  the 
Washington  Navy-Yard,  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  had 
come  aboard,  and  McEitchie  conceived  the  idea  of  show 
ing  him  the  beauties  of  my  boat-detaching  apparatus, 
which  had  been  fitted  to  a  whaleboat  of  the  Tallapoosa. 
McEitchie  climbed  up  into  the  boat,  which  hung  about 


62    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

twenty  feet  above  the  water,  and  said,  "Now,  Mr.  Secre 
tary,  you  see  I  take  hold  of  this  lever  with  my  right  hand, 
and  pull  out  the  safety-pin  with  my  left  hand,  and  then 
pull  up  the  lever. ' '  In  his  excitement  McRitchie  did  pull 
up  the  lever.  Down  went  the  boat  with  a  crash,  and 
McRitchie  in  it.  They  put  McRitchie  into  his  bunk  care 
fully,  and  he  was  all  right  again  in  a  few  days. 

I  towed  my  electric  log  astern  of  the  Tallapoosa  with 
gratifying  results  from  New  York  to  Portsmouth,  New 
Hampshire.  The  Tallapoosa  at  that  time  was  described 
in  the  newspapers  as  "the  terror  of  the  seas,"  because 
she  always  seemed  to  be  colliding  with  some  schooner. 
Sometimes  a  newspaper  would  print,  "Warning  to 
Mariners;  the  Tallapoosa  is  going  to  sea!"  The  officers 
on  board  the  Tallapoosa  said  the  schooners  were  always 
getting  in  front  of  the  Tallapoosa  in  order  that  there 
might  be  a  collision,  and  consequent  big  damages  from 
the  Government. 

I  remember  only  two  incidents  of  the  trip.  One  inci 
dent  was  being  aroused  from  my  slumbers  in  the  night 
by  a  stentorian  voice  shouting  down  the  engine-room 
hatch:  "Back  her!  Back  her!  Back  her  like  hell!" 
The  other  incident  was  meeting  a  classmate  of  mine  who 
had  been  bilged  from  the  naval  academy  for  striking  a 
colored  man  with  a  hatchet,  and,  in  company  with  him,  a 
young  marine  officer.  We  had  dinner  together  at  some 
restaurant  in  Portsmouth,  and  my  companions  began  to 
drink  so  copiously  that  it  put  me  on  my  guard,  and  I 
drank  very  little.  But  I  had  a  fine  time  that  evening 
trying  to  keep  them  from  such  conduct  as  would  get 
them  arrested.  Finally  I  got  them  safe  down  to  the 
waterfront  and  on  to  a  float,  from  which  they  were  to 
get  into  a  boat  to  take  them  to  the  opposite  side  of  the 
river.  The  tide  was  rushing  by  very  fast,  and  the  float 
and  the  boat  were  jumping  about  so  that  I  became  fear 
ful  that  they  might  fall  overboard  and  be  drowned.  My 
anxiety  was  not  allayed  by  their  getting  into  a  dispute, 
then  into  a  fight,  and  rolling  about  together  on  the  float. 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     63 

That  they  ever  got  into  the  boat  safe  one  must  attribute 
to  the  Providence  which  is  said  to  watch  over  drunken 
men. 

Shortly  after  my  return  to  New  York,  I  met  at  the 
navy  yard  one  day  Captain  Fillebrown's  successor  as 
captain  of  the  Powhatan,  Captain  Braine,  and  he  gave 
me  a  ticket  which  he  had  just  received  for  the  Charity 
Ball  in  New  York.  I  went  to  the  ball,  and  there,  to  my 
delight,  I  met  a  very  pretty  young  lady  with  beautiful 
and  abundant  red  hair,  dressed  in  a  light  blue  dress, 
the  same  Miss  Josephine  Harper  whom  I  had  met  a  year 
before.  She  sat  in  the  box  with  Ex-Governor  Tilden, 
but  she  descended  from  the  box  at  frequent  intervals  to 
dance  with  me. 

Shortly  after  this  my  promotion  to  the  grade  of  master 
became  due,  and  I  presented  myself  in  Washington  for 
examination  there.  I  passed  the  professional,  mental, 
and  moral  examination  without  trouble  but  the  doctors 
hesitated  sometime  about  passing  me  physically.  They 
said  I  had  organic  heart  disease,  but  that  it  had  not 
progressed  very  far.  Finally,  they  agreed  to  pass  me, 
but  warned  me  against  taking  any  violent  exercise  or 
becoming  excited  in  any  way.  Anybody  who  has  been 
told  by  a  physician  after  careful  examination  that  he 
had  organic  disease  will  know  how  I  felt. 

I  went  back  to  New  York,  and  resumed  my  pleasant 
life  on  board  the  Colorado  a  considerably  sobered  man. 
We  began  about  that  time  to  give  a  series  of  hops  on 
board,  and  to  these  hops  we  invited,  among  others,  Miss 
Josephine  Harper.  She  came,  and  on  leaving  invited 
me  to  call,  giving  as  her  address  562  Fifth  Avenue,  north 
west  corner  of  Forty-Sixth  Street.  I  called  shortly 
after,  and  found  that  she  lived  in  a  beautiful  house,  amid 
all  the  surroundings  of  wealth  and  taste,  with  a  very  at 
tractive  father  and  an  extremely  pretty  mother.  Shortly 
before  this  one  of  my  relatives  had  got  into  a  scrape 
such  that,  in  order  to  get  him  out,  I  had  agreed  to  let 
him  have  a  sum  of  money  every  month.  The  result  was 


64    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  KEAR-ADMIRAL 

that  my  finances  were  in  very  bad  condition,  and  I  real 
ized  that  I  would  have  to  go  through  the  winter  with  an 
old  and  rather  shabby  spring  overcoat.  About  this  time 
I  was  invited  to  dinner  one  Sunday  by  Mr.  Harper.  I 
did  not  think  much  about  my  overcoat  until  I  was  invited 
to  go  to  church  with  the  family  at  St.  Thomas 's ;  but  I 
can  remember  now  how  uncomfortable  I  felt  walking  up 
Fifth  Avenue  that  bright  winter  afternoon  in  a  shabby 
light  overcoat,  in  company  with  a  beautiful  and  beauti 
fully  dressed  young  lady  and  the  head  of  the  firm  of 
Harper  &  Brothers. 

Soon  after  that  I  realized  that  I  was  becoming  ex 
tremely  interested  in  a  young  lady  who  had  been  brought 
up  with  little  need  for  expert  knowledge  as  to  the  value 
of  a  dollar,  and  that  it  was  the  worst  kind  of  folly  for 
me  to  think  about  her  at  all  except  in  the  most  matter- 
of-fact  way.  I  determined  several  times  to  apply  for 
orders  to  sea,  but  I  never  did  apply.  Instead  of  that  I 
kept  calling  at  562,  and  late  in  the  afternoon  of  St. 
Valentine's  Day  I  found  myself  leaving  the  house  with 
the  happy,  yet  stunning,  realization  that  I  was  engaged 
to  be  married! 

I  was  in  no  position  to  be  engaged  to  anybody,  espe 
cially  to  a  young  lady  habituated  to  wealth.  My  pocket- 
book  was  almost  flat,  and  I  was  at  the  bottom  of  the 
master's  list  in  the  navy,  with  no  prospect  whatever 
in  life  except  that  of  very  slow  promotion,  poor  pay,  and 
a  lifelong  alternation  of  three  years  on  shore  and  three 
years  at  sea.  This  prospect  was  gloomy  enough ;  but  as 
it  was  mostly  of  a  distant  future,  it  did  not  concern  me 
so  much  as  did  the  immediate  situation,  and  the  problem 
of  how  I  was  to  be  able  to  act  as  an  engaged  young  man 
in  New  York,  buy  an  engagement-ring  with  a  diamond 
in  it,  and  go  through  the  expenses  of  getting  married 
without  any  money.  I  was  saved  about  two  weeks  after 
my  engagement  occurred  by  receiving,  as  royalty  on  my 
lead  pencil,  a  check  for  a  thousand  dollars  from  Faber. 

In  the  early  part  of  October  I  was  broken  away  from 


- 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     65 

my  pleasant  sojourn  in  New  York  and  the  society  of  my 
fiancee  by  orders  to  the  old  sailing  ship  Saratoga,  the 
same  one  in  which  I  had  made  my  plebe  cruise.  I  re 
mained  in  the  Saratoga  only  three  months,  during  which 
we  took  part  in  the  ceremonies  of  the  centennial  celebra 
tion  of  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis.  The  principal  fea 
ture  of  interest  in  the  cruise  to  me  was  the  acquaintance 
ship  I  formed  with  one  of  the  most  beautiful  characters 
I  have  ever  met,  Commander  Henry  C.  Taylor,  who  was 
the  captain. 

About  ten  years  before,  Taylor  had  been  ordered  to 
the  Naval  Academy  as  one  of  the  instructors  in  mathe 
matics.  The  first  day  that  he  appeared  before  the  section 
in  which  I  was,  he  presented  an  appearance  at  once  so 
pretty  and  so  effeminate  that  we  midshipmen  exchanged 
knowing  glances  with  one  another.  He  had  a  low,  sweet 
voice,  an  extremely  courteous  manner,  and  a  general  lady 
like  appearance  in  every  way.  At  one  stage  of  the  reci 
tation  a  midshipman  whom  we  will  call  Smith  made  a 
mistake;  and  seeing  that  Mr.  Taylor  realized  it,  Smith 
tried  to  make  it  appear  that  he  had  really  not  made  a 
mistake.  Smith  was  the  wit  and  bully  of  the  class,  and 
we  watched  his  maneuvers  with  interest.  Mr.  Taylor 
replied  to  Smith's  maneuvers  with  a  series  of  questions, 
put  in  a  very  courteous  way.  Finally,  Mr.  Taylor  said 
something  like  this : 

"Then,  Mr.  Smith,  if  I  understand  you  aright,  and 
pray  correct  me  if  I  do  not,  you  admit  to  me  and  to  the 
company  of  gentlemen  here  that  you  made  a  mistake 
in  your  answers,  and  that  you  tried  to  bluff  and  mis 
lead  me  into  believing  that  you  had  not  made  a  mistake. 
Am  I  correct  in  so  understanding  you,  Mr.  Smith?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Do  you  think  that  that  was  an  honorable  and  officer- 
like  thing  to  do?" 

"No,  sir." 

' '  Do  you  think  that  it  was  a  dishonorable  and  unoffieer- 
like  thing  to  do  I" 


66    FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

"Yes,  sir." 

After  that  we  never  tried  to  bully  or  bamboozle  "  Harry 
Taylor."  We  came  to  have  the  greatest  affection  and 
admiration  for  him,  and  we  and  the  entire  navy  always 
had  those  feelings  for  him  until  he  died,  as  chief  of  the 
Bureau  of  Navigation,  about  1903. 

One  day  in  conversation  with  Commander  Taylor  in 
his  cabin  on  board  the  Saratoga,  he  said  to  me,  apropos  of 
some  matter  we  were  discussing: 

" It  is  a  question  of  foresight."  I  had  never  thought 
much  about  foresight  up  to  that  minute,  and  I  said  fool 
ishly  : 

"Captain,  do  you  think  that  human  beings  have  fore 
sight  ?  Men  nowadays  do  not  have  the  gift  of  prophecy. ' ' 

I  do  not  remember  his  answer  in  words ;  but  the  sub 
stance  of  it  engraved  itself  on  my  memory,  and  is  one 
of  the  few  remarks  of  men  to  me  that  have  had  an  in 
fluence  on  my  life.  Taylor  said  in  substance: 

' '  No,  Mr.  Fiske,  men  do  not  have  the  gift  of  prophecy. 
But  men  are  so  constituted  that  those  of  one  generation 
are  much  the  same  as  those  of  the  generations  that  pre 
ceded  them,  and  are  apt  to  do  similar  things,  modified  by 
circumstances ;  and  this  is  especially  true  of  large  crowds 
of  men.  You  know  it  is  an  old  saying  that  history  re 
peats  itself.  As  I  understand  it,  this  does  not  mean  that 
the  events  which  happen  during  one  generation  are  ex 
actly  the  same  as  the  events  which  happened  during  the 
past  generation;  but  it  does  mean  that,  under  similar  con 
ditions,  large  bodies  of  men  act  similarly.  You  remem 
ber  that,  in  mathematics,  when  you  draw  a  line  on  a  piece 
of  paper  which  shows  that  something  is  moving  in  a  cer 
tain  direction  in  obedience  to  a  certain  law,  you  realize 
that  it  will  continue  to  move  in  that  direction  unless  some 
force  from  the  outside  changes  it;  and  that  that  is  sub 
stantially  the  "first  law  of  motion."  Therefore,  if  we 
can  determine,  even  approximately,  the  forces  which  con 
trol  a  certain  movement,  we  can  predict  at  least  ap 
proximately  the  direction  in  which  that  movement  will 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     67 

proceed.  This  ability  to  predict  approximately  is  what  I 
call  to  myself  'foresight,'  and  I  have  come  to  believe 
that  one  of  the  greatest  causes  of  failure,  especially  when 
the  movements  of  large  bodies  of  men  are  concerned,  re 
sults  from  lack  of  foresight,  and  from  a  failure  to  realize 
that  we  can  tell  the  probable  course  of  events  if  we  can 
find  some  set  of  conditions  in  the  past  like  those  present 
now.  Of  course,  if  you  can  find  in  history  conditions 
very  much  like  them,  you  can  then  ascertain  the  measures 
•which  were  then  applied  and  note  their  success  or  failure ; 
then,  in  the  light  of  that  experience,  you  can  decide  on  the 
measures  you  should  adopt." 

Taylor  lived  about  twenty  years  after  this.  He  car 
ried  out  in  his  own  studies  and  practice  the  principles 
I  have  tried  to  indicate,  and  he  became,  after  Admiral 
Luce,  our  navy's  principal  guide  in  strategy.  While  all 
the  navies  owe  an  enormous  debt  to  Admiral  Mahan  for 
calling  the  attention  of  the  world  at  large  to  the  in 
fluence  of  sea-power  on  the  prosperity  of  nations,  our 
own  navy  owes  more  to  Admiral  Luce  and  Admiral  Tay 
lor  than  to  anybody  else  for  determining  and  demon 
strating  the  direction  in  which  the  development  of  our 
navy  should  be  prosecuted,  and  then  insisting  that  that 
direction  should  be  followed. 

On  board  the  Saratoga  the  characteristic  of  our  cap 
tain  of  always  trying  to  see  ahead  had  one  curious, 
but  natural,  effect.  In  port,  and  at  sea  when  everything 
was  proceeding  smoothly,  he  was  always  on  the  lookout 
for  something  to  happen,  and  would  worry  the  officer  of 
deck  continually  about  all  sorts  of  things.  But  when 
things  were  bad,  as  they  were  one  night  during  a  tre 
mendous  southeast  gale  combined  curiously  with  a  dense 
fog  off  the  southern  coast  of  Long  Island,  in  the  path  of 
the  steamers  going  both  ways,  Taylor  stood  on  the  horse 
block  all  night,  calm,  cool,  and  buoyant.  He  always  wor 
ried,  when  things  were  all  right;  but,  and  probably  for 
that  reason,  he  was  magnificent  in  emergencies. 

I  secured  my  detachment  from  the  Saratoga  about  the 


68    FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

first  of  January,  1882,  and  orders  to  the  old  steam  frigate 
Minnesota,  then  stationed  at  Newport,  because  I  wanted 
to  be  married.  The  Minnesota  was  a  gunnery-training 
ship,  and  part  of  the  training  squadron  which  Admiral 
Luce  had  organized  for  educating  and  training  seamen 
for  the  navy.  Luce  was  undoubtedly  the  best  naval  offi 
cer,  in  the  large  sense  of  the  word,  whom  our  navy  has 
ever  produced.  Taylor  was  a  pupil  of  his,  and  so  was 
Mahan.  Luce  realized  that  the  further  the  education 
of  the  enlisted  man  could  be  pushed  in  the  proper  direc 
tion,  the  better  each  man  would  be,  and  therefore  the 
better  the  navy  would  be.  He  had  a  keener  insight  into 
what  a  navy  ought  to  be  than  anybody  else  in  our  navy 
or  any  other. 

One  afternoon  while  I  was  officer  of  the  deck  of  the 
Minnesota,  a  sailing-boat  capsized  not  far  away,  and  I 
sent  the  steam  launch  to  the  rescue.  The  sailing-boat 
contained  a  Mr.  Stokes,  a  wealthy  summer  resident  of 
Newport,  some  of  his  children,  and  two  sailors.  Our 
launch  saved  everybody  by  a  narrow  margin,  except  one 
sailor,  who  was  drowned.  The  next  evening,  when  I  was 
again  officer  of  the  deck,  a  boat  came  alongside,  and  a 
handsome  elderly  man  came  on  to  the  deck  and  said, 
"Permit  me  to  introduce  myself,  sir;  I  am  Mr.  Stokes." 
The  Stokes-Fiske  murder  flashed  through  my  memory, 
and  so  I  said,  "And  I  am  Mr.  Fiske."  Mr.  Stokes  drew 
himself  up  as  if  he  did  not  like  my  levity;  but  as  I  re 
tained  an  unmoved  face,  he  unbent  and  said,  '  *  I  am  very 
glad  to  meet  you,  Mr.  Fiske."  This  little  story  got 
abroad,  and  for  some  time  afterward  in  Newport,  one 
man  meeting  another  would  occasionally  say,  "Good 
morning;  I  am  Mr.  Stokes,"  and  the  other  would  reply, 
"Good  morning;  I  am  Mr.  Fiske." 

I  was  married  in  St.  Thomas's  Church,  New  York,  on 
February  15, 1882.  The  wedding  was  declared  to  be  very 
splendid,  the  beautiful  church  and  the  uniforms  of  the 
officers  making  a  fitting  setting  to  the  beauty  of  the  bride 
and  charming  appearance  and  costumes  of  the  brides- 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     69 

maids.  The  last  time  I  ever  saw  Governor  Tilden  was 
at  the  reception  which  followed  later  at  the  residence  of 
the  bride.  He  was  very  feeble,  but  he  jocosely  accused 
me  of  having  "cut  him  out,"  it  having  been  a  joke  be 
tween  him  and  Miss  Harper  for  sometime  past  that  they 
were  engaged  to  be  married. 

After  a  brief  honeymoon,  I  went  back  to  Newport 
with  my  bride,  and  took  up  life  again  aboard  the  Min 
nesota.  In  the  latter  part  of  the  summer,  because  re 
pairs  were  needed  to  the  ship,  we  steamed  from  New 
port  to  New  York,  taking  advantage  of  good  weather  in 
order  to  make  the  trip  in  safety. 

About  this  time  my  old  ship  the  Powhatan  went  through 
a  gale,  during  which  she  came  so  near  sinking  that,  when 
she  finally  limped  back  to  Hampton  Roads,  she  was  in 
such  bad  condition  that  the  department  finally  determined 
that  she  must  go  out  of  service  forever.  So  the  depart 
ment  ordered  her  to  proceed  to  the  Norfolk  Navy-Yard 
and  go  out  of  commission.  The  usual  influences  then  got 
to  work,  and  the  department  was  induced  to  modify  its 
order,  and  direct  that  the  Powhatan  go  to  New  York  and 
go  out  of  commission  there.  So  the  Powhatan  started 
from  Hampton  Eoads  for  New  York.  Things  went 
pretty  well  until  she  was  perhaps  fifty  miles  from  Sandy 
Hook,  when  bad  weather  came  on.  Whether  she  would 
ever  get  around  the  Hook  or  not  became  the  question, 
and  a  very  serious  one.  Finally  she  did  get  inside  the 
Hook,  and  she  did  drop  her  anchor  in  safety,  much  to 
the  relief  of  everybody  on  board.  But  hardly  had  the 
anchor  reached  the  bottom,  when  the  tops  of  the  furnaces 
gave  way,  and  the  Poivhatan  became  a  helpless  hulk. 
Tugs  were  then  sent  from  the  navy-yard,  and  the  old  tub 
was  towed,  an  abject  and  dejected  figure,  to  her  doom. 

While  on  board  the  Minnesota  the  idea  occurred  to  me 
of  making  a  breech-loading  musket  on  the  same  principle 
as  that  of  the  machine-gun  which  I  had  proposed  to  the 
Bureau  of  Ordnance  in  1877,  but  had  had  no  opportunity 
to  develop.  I  had  the  intention,  of  course,  of  attaching  a 


70    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

magazine  to  it  later,  in  case  the  breech-loading  apparatus 
worked  well.  By  this  plan  the  motion  of  the  bolt  for 
ward  and  back  was  given  by  turning  a  little  crank ;  so  that 
the  motion  was  the  reverse  of  that  of  a  reciprocating 
steam-engine.  No  trigger  was  needed,  because  the  revo 
lution  of  the  crank  beyond  a  certain  safety-stop,  which 
was  pushed  in  by  the  right  thumb  against  a  spring,  caused 
the  firing-pin  automatically  to  slip  off  a  cam,  and  fire  the 
gun.  Just  as  I  was  becoming  interested  in  this,  I  received 
a  letter  from  the  Bureau  of  Navigation,  informing  me 
that  the  trials  held  of  my  electric  log  had  been  success 
ful,  and  that  the  bureau  was  prepared  to  adopt  it  for 
the  service  if  it  could  be  furnished  in  quantities  at  a 
price  sufficiently  low.  I  was  so  interested  in  my  gun, 
however,  that  I  delayed  answering  the  bureau's  letter. 
In  fact,  I  have  not  yet  answered  it,  and  the  electric  log 
was  developed  later  by  other  people. 

My  breech-loading  gun  worked  very  well  indeed.  I 
could  fire  twenty-four  shots  a  minute  with  it,  and  I 
found  it  extremely  accurate  in  firing  at  a  target,  because 
the  movement  of  the  crank  necessary  for  firing  did  not 
throw  the  sight  off  the  target  so  much  as  did  the  pulling 
of  a  trigger.  One  day  shortly  before  the  Minnesota  left 
Newport,  I  was  on  the  forecastle  firing  my  gun  out  into 
the  water.  There  were  very  few  men  on  board,  and  no 
body  was  on  deck  with  me  except  Lieutenant  Bartlett, 
who  had  a  watch  in  his  hand,  and  was  counting  the  num 
ber  of  shots  I  could  fire  in  a  minute.  Bartlett  was  stand 
ing  about  ten  feet  from  me,  when,  by  clumsiness  on  my 
part,  the  gun  went  off,  and  landed  a  bullet  in  the  deck  be 
tween  Bartlett 's  feet.  Bartlett  and  I  then  vowed  to  each 
other  that  we  would  keep  this  secret  always.  Bartlett 
died  several  years  ago.  I  think  he  kept  my  clumsy  act  a 
secret  till  he  died. 

The  Minnesota  went  to  New  York  shortly  afterward, 
and  when  I  obtained  my  year's  leave,  I  sent  my  musket 
to  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  for  inspection.  When  I  went 
to  the  bureau  later,  it  was  still  there  in  company  with 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     71 

other  suggested  guns  of  novel  types.  Lieutenant  Couden 
advised  me  to  submit  my  gun  for  the  consideration  of 
the  Italian  Army,  saying  that  Italians  would  be  especially 
adapted  to  using  it,  because  of  their  practice  in  turning 
the  handles  of  hand-organs. 

Since  1865  the  navy  had  been  pursuing  the  downward 
path,  and  now  (1882)  she  had  reached  the  bottom.  No  at 
tempt  whatever  had  been  made  to  resist  the  process  of 
degeneration  and  decay,  the  principal  reason  being  the 
" swing  of  the  pendulum"  that  always  sets  in  after  every 
extreme  condition  of  any  kind ;  for  instance,  after  every 
war.  The  people  of  the  country,  North  and  South,  had 
suffered  so  much  from  the  Civil  War  that  they  made 
themselves  believe  that  war  was  a  "relic  of  barbarism," 
and  that  it  would  never  come  again,  at  least  to  so  en 
lightened  a  people  as  those  of  the  United  States.  Even 
in  the  army  and  navy  there  was  a  general  acquiescence 
in  this  proposition ;  and  if  it  had  not  been  for  a  few  men 
like  Luce  in  the  navy  and  Upton  in  the  army,  who  besides 
being  students  of  history  had  the  moral  courage  and  the 
mental  courage  to  disagree  publicly  with  the  pacifist 
attitude  of  the  time,  the  army  and  navy  would  have  sunk 
even  lower  than  they  did. 

Of  course  I  did  not  realize  these  things  at  that  time; 
but  I  did  realize  that  the  navy  was  an  extremely  uninter 
esting  place  for  a  man  who  had  already  learned  virtually 
all  there  was  of  the  naval  profession,  and  who  could  see 
no  prospect  ahead  except  a  tiresome  alternation  of 
monotonous  cruises  at  sea  and  profitless  tours  on  shore. 
Just  then,  in  the  autumn  of  1882,  two  inventions  in  elec 
tricity  showed  the  promise  of  the  future  to  any  one  who 
had  pondered  even  a  little  about  what  Commander  Taylor 
had  said  regarding  foresight.  These  inventions  were  the 
electric  light  and  the  telephone. 

I  went  for  advice  to  Mr.  Park  Benjamin,  who  had  re 
signed  from  the  editorship  of  The  Scientific  American, 
and  had,  with  his  brother,  Dr.  George  H.  Benjamin,  estab 
lished  an  office  as  scientific  expert  on  Broadway,  opposite 


72    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  post-office.  I  told  Mr.  Benjamin  what  I  was  thinking 
about,  and  he  said  in  effect : 

"That 's  just  the  right  thing  to  do.  Whether  you  stay 
in  the  navy  or  not,  it  will  do  you  a  lot  of  good  to  know  all 
about  electricity.  Electricity  is  the  coming  thing,  and  it 
can  be  made  very  useful  to  the  navy ;  so  if  you  jump  right 
in  now,  you  '11  be  able  to  do  a  lot  for  the  navy  in  showing 
it  how  to  use  electricity.  If  you  don't  know  how  to  start, 
come  right  in  here,  and  help  me  and  my  brother.  We 
won 't  give  you  any  salary ;  but  you  can  study  my  books, 
and  we  are  engaged  in  such  a  lot  of  new  work  that  you  can 
get  into  touch  with  the  electrical  movement  right  away. ' ' 

I  applied  for  six  months '  leave  from  the  Navy  Depart 
ment,  saying  that  I  wished  to  study  electricity.  Commo 
dore  John  G.  Walker,  a  splendidly  able  and  progressive 
man,  was  then  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Navigation.  Com 
mander  McCalla  was  his  assistant,  and  I  recalled  the  fact 
that  when  I  left  the  Powlnatan,  McCalla  had  said  to  me 
in  effect : 

"Mr.  Fiske,  I  do  not  approve  at  all  of  a  good  deal  of 
your  conduct  while  you  have  been  in  this  ship.  At  the 
same  time  I  recognize  in  you  a  mind  of  considerable 
originality,  and  if  I  can  ever  do  anything  for  you,  you 
will  do  me  a  favor  if  you  will  request  me  to  do  it."  So 
accompanying  my  letter  to  the  Bureau  of  Navigation,  I 
sent  an  unofficial  letter  to  Commander  McCalla,  explain 
ing  it.  By  return  mail  I  got  a  letter  from  McCalla,  tell 
ing  me  that  he  had  submitted  my  request  to  Commodore 
Walker,  recommending  that  he  grant  it,  and  that  Walker 
had  replied,  "Tell  Fiske  that  six  months  isn't  enough, 
tell  him  to  ask  for  a  year. ' ' 

Of  course  I  did  so,  and  of  course  I  got  the  leave.  I 
started  in  at  once.  At  this  time  the  telephone  had  been 
in  existence  six  years  since  the  time  its  ability  to  transmit 
speech  had  been  demonstrated  at  the  Centennial  Expo 
sition  in  Philadelphia,  and  it  had  been  declared  by  most 
people  to  be  "a  toy."  Very  few  telephones  were  to  be 
seen,  and  the  use  of  whatever  telephones  there  were  in 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     73 

use  was  extremely  exasperating.  However,  coming 
events  were  casting  their  shadows  before,  and  several 
companies  were  trying  to  put  telephones  on  the  market, 
which  they  declared  did  not  infringe  the  Bell  patent. 
Among  these  companies  was  the  Drawbaugh  Company, 
of  which  Mr.  Benjamin  was  the  patent  attorney.  The  arc 
light  (that  is,  the  large,  flickering  electric  light  used  to 
light  streets)  was  fairly  established,  especially  the  Brush 
light ;  but  the  incandescent  light,  for  use  in  interiors,  was 
struggling  for  existence.  The  Edison  Company  had  es 
tablished  a  little  plant  on  Pearl  Street,  and  there  a  small 
dynamo  turned  around  most  of  the  time  day  and  night, 
supplying  light  to  a  small  district  near  by  at  the  expense 
of  the  Edison  Company;  and  Mr.  Hiram  Maxim  had  in 
stalled  some  lights  on  the  ferry-boats  that  plied  between 
New  York  and  Jersey  City.  But  despite  those  facts,  the 
practicability  of  the  incandescent  light  for  general  use 
was  scoffed  at.  Professor  Henry  Morton,  the  president 
of  Stevens  Institute  in  Hoboken,  for  instance,  was  an 
utter  disbeliever  in  it,  and  declared  so  in  speech  and  writ 
ing  though  he  defended  Mr.  Edison  from  the  charge  of 
being  like  Keeley,  a  charlatan  and  impostor.  President 
Morton  said  that  the  trouble  with  Edison  was  that  he 
didn't  understand  scientific  and  engineering  matters; 
that  he  was  simply  ignorant.  Mr.  Morton  was  a  man  of 
such  influence  that  his  estimate  of  Edison  and  of  the  elec 
tric  light  was  generally  accepted. 

I  stayed  in  Mr.  Benjamin's  office  only  three  months. 
It  was  intensely  interesting,  but  I  soon  began  to  see  that 
I  was  out  of  place ;  and  when  I  suggested  this  to  Mr.  Ben 
jamin  one  day  he  said : 

"Yes,  Fiske,  I  think  you  are.  In  fact,  I  don't  know 
what  some  of  my  clients  would  think,  who  realize  how 
many  important  patent  secrets  are  in  this  office,  if  they 
knew  that  you  are  hobnobbing  with  electrical  people 
everywhere  and  visiting  electrical  companies.  The  pur 
suit  of  information  is  very  laudable  on  your  part,  doubt 
less,  but  it  might  excite  their  suspicions." 


74    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

So  I  borrowed  four  hundred  dollars  from  my  mother, 
and  hired  an  office  in  the  old  Astor  House  as  "Consulting 
Electrical  Engineer."  This  may  seem  a  rather  pre 
sumptuous  action  on  my  part,  but  it  really  was  not  so, 
because  I  realized  that  I  knew  more  about  practical  elec 
tricity,  as  connected  with  its  science,  than  most  other 
people  did.  I  had  had  an  excellent  education  in  mathe 
matics  and  the  physical  sciences  at  the  naval  academy  and 
a  fair  acquaintanceship  with  mechanical  apparatus; 
whereas  very  few  of  those  interested  in  the  electrical 
movement  then  knew  more  than  the  theory  or  the  prac 
tice.  They  could  then  be  divided  with  fair  correctness 
into  three  classes:  first,  the  professors  in  the  colleges, 
who  knew  nothing  whatever  about  the  practical  uses  or 
apparatus  of  electricity,  but  whose  knowledge  was  con 
fined  to  laboratory  apparatus,  which  did  not  include  any 
new  inventions  in  the  electric  light  or  telephone ;  second, 
employees  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company, 
who  knew  nothing  of  scientific  electricity,  but  knew  all 
about  the  only  electric  apparatus  then  in  general  use, 
which  was  telegraph  apparatus ;  third,  a  number  of  half 
educated  men,  possibly  one  thousand,  who  had  some 
knowledge  of  machinery,  a  good  deal  of  ability,  and  su 
perabundant  energy,  and  who  were  trying  to  invent,  or 
to  make  in  a  haphazard  way,  electric  dynamos,  electric 
lights,  and  telephones. 

I  made  just  about  enough  money  to  pay  my  office  rent. 
I  became  infatuated  with  electricity,  whose  coming  won 
ders  dazzled  me ;  and  I  studied  and  wrote  nearly  all  the 
time.  But  I  could  not  make  much  real  headway.  I  un 
derwent  periods  of  extreme  discouragement.  I  remem 
ber  one  day  when  I  was  feeling  particularly  blue  receiv 
ing  a  copy  of  the  London  Electrician.  I  looked  with 
reverence  at  the  scientific  articles  in  it  and  at  the  names 
of  the  great  men  who  wrote  them,  wishing  that  I  could 
be  like  them ;  when  suddenly  I  saw  my  own  name  stand 
ing  out  in  letters  that  looked  six  feet  high.  There,  to  my 
intense  astonishment,  I  saw  more  than  a  page  of  the 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     75 

London  Electrician  taken  up  with  a  copy  of  an  article 
by  me  that  I  had  published  in  some  American  paper! 
The  revulsion  of  feeling  from  intense  discouragement  to 
intense  encouragement  was  so  strong  that  I  walked  about 
for  hours  thereafter  in  an  unfamiliar  world,  with  unfa 
miliar  hopes  and  dreams. 

About  this  time  a  tall,  good-looking  man,  with  his  over 
coat  carried  over  his  arm,  came  into  my  office  and  intro 
duced  himself  as  Mr.  Samuel  D.  Mott.  He  said  that  he 
was  a  draftsman,  and  had  made  many  of  Edison's  draw 
ings  for  him ;  but  that  now  he  wanted  to  start  off  "  on  his 
own  hook, ' '  and  that  it  had  occurred  to  him  that  he  might 
get  desk  room  in  my  office.  I  told  him  that  I  was  pay 
ing  twenty-five  dollars  a  month  rent,  and  that  I  would  be 
glad  to  give  him  desk  room  if  he  would  pay  me  ten  dollars 
a  month.  He  said  that  he  would,  and  so  in  he  came. 

Having  had  occasion  to  test  the  resistance  of  some  insu 
lators  around  which  telegraph  wires  were  secured  on  tele 
graph  poles,  an  idea  occurred  to  me  whereby  the  resist 
ance  between  the  wire  and  the  insulator  might  be  in 
creased  and  the  leakage  decreased.  I  talked  the  scheme 
over  with  Mott,  and  we  agreed  to  take  out  a  patent  to 
gether  on  it.  This  we  did.  The  insulator  about  a  year 
later  was  put  on  the  market,  under  the  name  of  the  Fiske- 
Mott  Insulator,  by  the  Chicago  Insulating  Company. 
About  that  time  I  had  to  go  to  sea,  and  I  sold  my  half  of 
the  patent  to  the  company  for  a  hundred  dollars. 

In  the  spring  it  occurred  to  me  that,  although  there 
were  a  number  of  books  written  on  electricity,  there  was 
no  book  on  what  we  now  call  ''electrical  engineering"; 
that  the  existing  books  could  be  divided  into  two  classes, 
mathematical  treatises  on  electricity  and  books  giving 
rules  of  thumb  by  which  to  make  electrical  apparatus. 
So  I  concluded  to  write  a  book  that  would  try  to  bridge 
the  gap  between  the  two  classes.  It  occurred  to  me  to  ask 
Harper  &  Brothers  to  publish  the  book  when  I  had  fin 
ished  it ;  but  that  idea  made  me  feel  uncomfortable,  and 
so  I  decided  not  to  do  it.  I  worked  for  four  months  al- 


76    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

most  continuously  on  the  book,  and  when  it  was  finished 
I  took  it  to  D.  Van  Nostrand,  sometime  in  August.  I 
showed  it  to  the  venerable  old  publisher  literally  with 
''fear  and  trembling,"  but  he  accepted  it  almost  imme 
diately.  He  said  that  he  had  been  wanting  to  get  a  book 
such  as  I  had  written,  and  that  as  soon  as  his  readers  had 
passed  it,  he  would  get  the  book  out  just  as  quickly  as  he 
could  print  it. 

The  book  came  out  in  the  latter  part  of  October  and 
was  a  success  from  the  start.  The  reviews  were  all  fa 
vorable,  and  most  of  them  commented  on  the  clearness  of 
the  style.  It  ran  through  ten  editions  quickly,  and  sold, 
though  at  a  gradually  decreasing  rate,  for  twenty-two 
years. 

I  have  always  been  sorry  that  I  was  never  able  to  re 
vise  the  book,  as  the  publishers  continually  urged  me  to 
do.  But  on  the  first  of  October  I  had  to  decide  whether 
I  would  go  back  into  the  navy  or  resign.  Of  course  I 
ought  to  have  resigned;  but  I  was  married,  and  all  the 
family  on  both  my  side  and  my  wife 's  side  urged  me  not 
to  do  so.  Their  principal  argument  was  that  my  health 
was  so  precarious  that  I  might  break  down  at  any  time 
and  have  no  means  of  support ;  whereas,  in  the  navy,  the 
retired  list  was  always  waiting  for  me,  with  its  small, 
but  certain,  pay. 

So  I  wrote  to  McCalla,  and  received  a  reply  from  him, 
asking  me  if  I  would  like  to  go  to  the  Electrical  Exposi 
tion  at  Vienna  as  the  representative  of  the  Navy  Depart 
ment.  After  talking  this  over  with  my  wife,  I  wrote  back 
the  next  day,  saying  I  would  be  very  glad  to  do  so.  The 
first  of  October  approached  rapidly,  and  with  it  the  end 
of  my  leave,  and  I  was  making  preparations  for  going 
to  Vienna  when  I  got  another  letter  from  McCalla,  saying 
that,  when  my  orders  to  Vienna  were  presented  to  the 
secretary  for  signature,  the  secretary  said  he  had  already 
promised  such  orders  to  Lieutenant  McLean. 

McCalla  expressed  his  regret,  but  said  that  he  had  gone 
to  Commodore  Sicard,  the  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Ord- 


LEAD-PENCIL,  TALLAPOOSA,  SARATOGA     77 

nance,  with  the  suggestion  that  my  knowledge  of  elec 
tricity,  especially  of  the  new  things  in  it,  would  make  me 
a  valuable  member  of  the  bureau,  and  that  Sicard  had 
agreed,  and  asked  McCalla  to  have  me  ordered  to  the 
bureau,  if  I  wished.  McCalla  closed  his  letter  by  urging 
me  to  accept  the  position  offered.  I  accepted,  and  orders 
came  to  report  to  the  chief  of  Bureau  of  Ordnance  on 
October  1. 


CHAPTER  VII 

BUREAU   OF   ORDNANCE   AND   FRANKLIN   INSTITUTE 
ELECTRICAL   EXPOSITION 

MY  wife  and  I  arrived  in  Washington  on  Septem 
ber  30,  the  day  before  I  was  to  report  for  duty  in 
the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  and  took  up  pleasant  quarters  in 
a  large  boarding-house  at  823  Vermont  Avenue,  directly 
opposite  the  Arlington  Hotel.  Shortly  after,  a  cousin 
of  my  wife's  visited  Washington  and  stopped  at  the  Ar 
lington  Hotel.  Before  leaving  New  York,  he  secured  her 
address,  and  one  afternoon  he  stepped  out  from  the 
Arlington  Hotel  and  said  to  the  driver  of  a  carriage : 

' '  How  much  to  take  me  to  823  Vermont  Avenue  f ' ' 

With  great  presence  of  mind  the  driver  answered, 
"Two  dollars." 

Cousin  John,  being  a  business  man,  and  knowing  the 
value  of  having  business  matters  carefully  arranged, 
said: 

"Very  well,  I  will  give  you  two  dollars  and  no  more. 
Now  take  me  to  823  Vermont  Avenue  by  the  most  direct 
route." 

So  he  got  into  the  carriage,  and  was  driven  directly 
across  the  street  to  a  house  that  had  the  figures  823  above 
the  door.  Cousin  John  realized  the  situation,  and  gave 
the  driver  his  two  dollars  and  a  good  cigar  besides. 

The  next  day  I  reported  for  duty  in  the  bureau.  Cap 
tain  Sicard  was  chief  of  the  bureau,  and  as  such  had 
temporarily  the  title  of  commodore.  Commander  Sum- 
ner  was  the  senior  assistant  and  occupied  a  room  by  him 
self ;  but  the  real  work  of  the  bureau  was  done  by  Sicard 
himself,  assisted  by  Lieutenants  Couden  and  Bucking 
ham  and  Ensign  Alger,  three  exceptionally  able  men. 

78 


BUREAU  OF  ORDNANCE  79 

There  were  two  rooms  for  the  draftsmen,  one  room  for 
the  chief  clerk,  another  room  for  other  clerks,  and  two 
for  the  four  officers.  Sicard  was  a  splendid  man  in  every 
way,  but  he  spent  too  much  of  his  time  with  details.  He 
had  a  fine  mind,  however,  and  though  he  was  slow,  he 
almost  never  made  a  mistake.  There  are  few  men  to 
whom  the  navy  owes  so  much  as  it  does  to  Sicard. 

The  Navy  was  just  beginning  to  pull  itself  out  of  the 
comatose  condition  into  which  it  had  fallen;  but  it  was 
so  far  behind,  especially  in  ordnance  and  gunnery,  that 
the  work  of  reconstruction  had  to  be  radical  and  begin  at 
the  bottom.  Virtually  all  the  old  ordnance  was  useless 
for  the  purposes  of  modern  war,  and  there  was  nobody 
in  the  United  States  who  knew  anything  about  the  new 
ordnance  except  from  reading  about  it.  The  live  men 
of  the  navy,  like  Luce  and  John  G.  Walker,  had  finally 
roused  certain  congressmen  and  others  to  a  realization 
of  facts,  and  the  ''Naval  Gun  Foundry  Board,"  under  the 
presidency  of  Rear-Admiral  Simpson,  had  been  sent  to 
Europe  to  study  and  report  on  modern  methods  of  manu 
facturing  steel  and  steel  guns.  Furthermore,  a  system 
had  been  started  a  few  years  before,  on  the  initiative  of 
Cadet  Engineer  Francis  T.  Bowles,  whereby  men  who 
graduated  near  the  heads  of  classes  at  the  Naval  Acad 
emy  were  sent  to  naval  construction  schools  in  Great 
Britain  and  France  to  learn  the  art  of  building  naval 
ships.  The  Naval  Advisory  Board  also  had  been  estab 
lished,  and  was  still  in  operation.  The  president  was 
Commodore  Shufeldt,  and  the  secretary  was  Assistant 
Naval  Constructor  Bowles,  who  was  one  of  the  first  grad 
uates  of  the  system  that  he  had  initiated.  This  system 
with  certain  modifications  continues  to  the  present  day, 
and  is  the  cause  of  the  excellence  of  our  corps  of  naval 
constructors. 

The  navy  was  in  a  deplorable  plight.  The  principal 
reason,  of  course,  was  the  belief  through  the  country  that 
war  would  never  come  again ;  but  part  of  it  could  reason 
ably  be  laid  upon  the  shoulders  of  George  M.  Robeson, 


80     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  previous  secretary  of  the  navy.  He  had  been  a  law 
yer  in  New  Jersey,  but  I  have  never  heard  that  even  as 
a  lawyer  he  had  achieved  such  a  reputation  for  ability 
and  character  as  to  warrant  his  being  placed  in  supreme 
control  of  the  naval  defense  of  the  United  States  and 
intrusted  with  the  responsibility  of  making  decisions  in 
the  complicated  cases  that  naval  administration  con 
stantly  brings  up. 

A  feeling  had  gradually  developed  through  the  country 
that  Robeson  was  personally  dishonest,  and  that  he  re 
ceived  large  sums  of  money  for  his  personal  benefit  from 
contractors,  especially  from  a  contractor  named  Secor, 
who  built  and  repaired  some  ships.  The  New  York 
Sun  usually  spoke  of  him  as  "The  Honorable  Secor 
Robeson,"  and  this  name  stuck  to  him  so  tightly  that 
some  people  forgot  what  his  first  name  really  was,  and 
one  naval  officer  is  said  to  have  addressed  an  official  let 
ter  to  him  by  that  name !  It  is  quite  probable  that  the 
accusations  were  not  true,  but  the  fact  that  they  persisted 
for  many  years  injured  the  navy  exceedingly.  Reports 
were  current  that  many  a  congressman  would  remark,  ' 1 1 
am  perfectly  willing  to  vote  money  for  the  navy,  but  I  am 
not  willing  to  vote  money  for  Secor  Robeson." 

In  March,  1881,  Judge  William  H.  Hunt  had  become 
secretary  under  President  Garfield.  Judge  Hunt  was  a 
man  of  high  character  and  ability,  and  as  he  had  a  son  in 
the  navy  who  was  a  lieutenant,  he  was  really  interested 
in  the  navy.  One  of  his  first  acts  was  to  secure  the  con 
sent  of  President  Garfield  to  the  appointment  of  a  naval 
advisory  board  to  consider  and  report  on  what  should  be 
done  to  rehabilitate  the  navy.  Congress  authorized  the 
construction  of  certain  ships  in  1882;  but  the  death  of 
Mr.  Garfield,  followed  by  the  accession  of  Mr.  Arthur  to 
the  Presidency,  and  his  appointment  of  Mr.  William  E. 
Chandler  as  Secretary  of  the  Navy  brought  about  the  ap 
pointment  of  a  second  advisory  board,  authorized  by 
Congress  in  1882,  with  a  personnel  different  from  that  of 


81 

the  first  board.  Mr.  Chandler,  like  Judge  Hunt,  had  a 
son  who  was  an  officer  in  the  navy,  so  that  he  also  was 
actually  interested  in  it.  He  was  entirely  free  from  any 
suspicion  of  financial  dishonesty  and  was  an  energetic 
and  forceful  man,  and  though  he  had  not  been  educated 
in  scientific  or  engineering  lines  or  had  much  experience 
in  administration,  he  was  the  instrumentality  for  accom 
plishing  a  good  deal. 

The  navy  was  exceedingly  fortunate  then  in  having  as 
chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Navigation,  and  therefore  as  the 
principal  professional  adviser  to  the  secretary,  Captain 
John  G.  Walker.  Walker  was  a  man  of  clear  and  broad 
mental  vision,  excellent  judgment,  and  great  force  of 
character;  besides,  he  had  recently  had  the  advantage, 
when  on  extended  leave,  of  a  few  years'  experience  in  a 
high  administrative  position  in  a  railroad — I  think  the 
Chicago,  Burlington  and  Quincy.  Walker  and  Sicard 
comprised  a  very  good  team,  Sicard  offsetting  by  his  pos 
sibly  too  great  prudence  and  his  engineering  type  of 
mind  any  tendency  of  Walker  to  go  to  unwise  extremes. 
These  two  men,  and  especially  Walker,  were  able  to  im 
press  Mr.  Chandler  with  the  necessity  for  building  up 
the  navy  from  the  national  point  of  view.  In  those  days, 
to  a  greater  degree  even  than  now,  congressmen  got  their 
ideas  as  to  what  a  good  navy  required  direct  from  the 
secretary  rather  than  from  naval  officers.  I  asked  many 
congressmen  and  others  why  they  did  not  get  their  ideas 
from  naval  officers  direct  instead  of  getting  them  filtered 
through  the  mind  of  a  secretary,  who  might  transmit  cer 
tain  inaccuracies  in  the  process  of  filtering.  The  an 
swers  were  rather  vague  and  amounted  to  saying,  "The 
military  must  be  subordinate  to  the  civil  authority." 
This  did  not  seem  a  very  logical  reason,  but  it  was  evi 
dently  potent. 

Walker,  like  most  great  men,  was  unassuming  in  his 
manner  and  appearance  and  had  a  keen  sense  of  humor. 
One  day  a  young  officer  came  into  the  Bureau  of  Navi- 


82    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

gallon,  and,  seeing  Walker,  whom  he  did  not  recognize, 
said  to  him,  "Where  's  Walker?"  To  this,  the  unex 
pected  answer  came: 

"Oh,  don't  call  me  Walker;  call  me  John." 

The  officer  was  overwhelmed  with  confusion,  and  apolo 
gized  as  best  he  could;  but  Walker  laughed  it  off,  and 
gave  the  young  man  the  orders  he  requested. 

The  second  advisory  board  had  recommended  the  con 
struction  of  certain  vessels,  and  these  recommendations 
being  approved  by  the  secretary  and  the  President,  the 
Congress  of  1883  had  authorized  the  construction  of  ves 
sels  virtually  in  accordance  with  those  recommendations. 
The  vessels  authorized  were  one  of  about  4500  tons'  dis 
placement,  two  of  3000  tons  each,  and  one  of  1500.  These 
were  called  afterward  the  Chicago,  Atlanta,  Boston,  and 
Dolphin.  As  the  Dolphin  was  only  a  gunboat,  with  only 
one  gun  as  large  as  six-inches  caliber,  the  principal  work 
in  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  when  I  joined  it,  was  in  de 
signing  the  ordnance  for  the  Chicago,  Atlanta,  and  Bos- 
ton,  especially  the  Atlanta  and  Boston,  which  were  to  be 
completed  before  the  Chicago. 

My  work  in  the  bureau  was  to  be  the  adaptation  of  elec 
tricity  to  ordnance  and  gunnery.  Couden  looked  out  for 
torpedoes  and  guns,  Buckingham  for  gun-mounts,  and 
Alger  for  mathematics,  especially  as  applied  to  gun  de 
signs.  But  we  all  worked  together,  and  we  had  to  work 
together;  in  fact,  we  had  to  flounder  about  a  good  deal 
together.  None  of  us  knew  very  much  about  any  of  the 
subjects  of  which  we  were  in  charge  except  from  reading. 
An  idea  of  our  fitness  for  the  work  may  be  gathered  from 
the  fact  that,  after  all  the  designs  had  been  made  for  the 
ordnance  outfit  of  the  Atlanta  and  Boston,  we  discovered 
that,  if  the  ship  heeled  over  as  much  as  ten  degrees,  the 
gun  could  not  be  turned  around.  The  design  called  for 
hand  power  only,  and  the  center  of  gravity  of  the  gun 
and  the  gun-carriage,  as  designed,  was  so  far  away  from 
the  pivot  in  the  deck  that  no  two  men,  using  the  training- 
gear  designed,  could  possibly  move  the  gun-carriage  up- 


83 

hill  if  the  ship  rolled  ten  degrees.  To  make  the  matter 
worse,  nearly  all  of  the  money  appropriated  had  already 
been  allotted,  so  that  there  was  very  little  money  left 
with  which  to  make  any  changes.  It  was  found  practi 
cable  to  change  the  design  in  such  a  way  as  to  move  the 
center  of  gravity  much  nearer  to  the  pivot,  but  it  could 
not  be  moved  far  enough  to  overcome  the  difficulty.  We 
had  faced  the  situation  blankly  for  several  days  when  I 
was  able  to  offer  a  solution  that  met  the  difficulty.  By 
this  solution  the  design  and  the  gearing  remained -as  they 
were,  but  a  shaft  was  run  down  from  the  gearing  on  the 
gun-carriage  to  a  room  below,  in  which  we  could  put  an 
engine  that  could  be  operated  by  the  gun  captain  from 
above. 

After  my  solution  had  been  accepted,  the  next  question 
that  came  up  was  the  kind  of  engine  which  should  be  put 
in  the  room  below.  The  preference  of  Commodore  Si- 
card  was  for  a  water-engine,  which  was  the  kind  of  engine 
that  the  British  were  using  for  turning  guns ;  my  prefer 
ence  was  for  an  electric  engine ;  and  the  preference  of  the 
other  officers  was  for  a  pneumatic  engine.  As  a  result 
of  our  discussions,  I  was  sent  to  New  York  to  investigate 
the  matter,  and  was  cautioned  to  find  as  cheap  an  engine 
as  practicable,  because  the  bureau  had  only  a  few  hun 
dred  dollars  left  to  devote  to  this  purpose.  After  going 
to  the  various  pump  manufacturers,  air-drill  manufac 
turers,  electric  companies,  and  steam-engine-makers,  I 
was  forced  to  decide  in  favor  of  an  ordinary  steam- 
engine. 

On  my  return  to  the  bureau,  my  decision  was  accepted, 
and  a  contract  was  made  with  a  firm  on  Dey  Street,  to 
supply  two  engines  for  the  Atlanta  and  two  for  the  Bos 
ton  to  fulfil  certain  specifications.  The  drawing  of  the 
specifications  was  done  mostly  by  me,  but  none  of  us 
knew  much  about  steam-engines.  To  illustrate  this,  it  is 
merely  necessary  to  say  that  in  the  specifications,  as 
finally  agreed  to,  the  four  engines  were  to  be  tested  on  a 
continuous  run  of  twenty-four  hours,  but  nothing  was 


84    FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

said  about  what  load  the  engines  should  carry !  Finally, 
when  the  engines  were  reported  ready,  I  went  to  the  town 
of  Reading,  Pennsylvania,  and  solemnly  stood  by  those 
engines  for  twenty-four  hours  while  they  turned  round 
without  any  load  whatever.  Fortunately  for  the  bureau, 
this  story  never  leaked  out ;  and  I  did  not  realize  what  a 
silly  test  it  was  for  some  time  afterward. 

At  the  proper  time  the  four  engines  were  put  into  the 
two  ships.  The  one  tried  first  was  the  one  that  turned 
the  eight-inch  gun  on  the  quarter-deck  of  the  Atlanta. 
On  the  first  test  it  turned  the  gun  perfectly ;  but  the  gear 
ing  made  a  high  and  hideous  rattle  that  drowned  all  other 
sounds  on  board  the  ship,  and  could  be  heard  over  the 
navy-yard  and  out  in  Brooklyn.  This  difficulty  was  reme 
died  without  very  much  difficulty,  however,  and  the  four 
engines  turned  the  four  eight-inch  guns  of  the  Atlanta 
and  Boston  successfully  for  several  years  thereafter. 

I  found  the  work  of  adapting  electricity  to  ordnance 
more  difficult  than  I  had  expected,  mainly  by  reason  of 
the  lack  of  confidence  in  electricity  by  officers,  but  largely 
also  by  reason  of  the  imperfect  nature  of  the  insulation 
then  used  on  wires  and  the  general  fragility  of  electrical 
apparatus.  Shortly  after  I  joined  the  bureau,  Lieu 
tenant-Commander  Royal  B.  Bradford  was  assigned  to 
duty  in  the  Bureau  of  Navigation  as  "  naval  inspector  of 
electric  lighting."  He  had  just  returned  from  a  cruise 
as  executive  officer  of  the  U.  S.  S.  Trenton,  the  first  man- 
of-war  in  the  world  to  be  equipped  with  an  electric  light 
ing  plant.  Bradford  was  so  impressed  with  the  advan 
tages  of  electric  lighting  for  navy  ships,  and  he  had  made 
such  a  success  of  the  electric  lighting  of  the  Trenton,  that 
the  progressive  Commodore  Walker  took  up  the  matter 
with  energy  and  force. 

Bradford  was  an  admirable  man  for  the  task,  and  went 
ahead  with  his  work  with  so  much  energy  and  ability  that 
before  many  years  all  except  our  older  ships  were 
equipped  for  electric  lighting.  To  Bradford  more  than 
to  anybody  else  does  the  navy  owe  the  excellence  of  the 


BUREAU  OF  ORDNANCE  85 

electric  lighting  installations  in  our  ships.  It  may  be  re 
marked  here  that  the  whole  country  also  owes  much  to 
Bradford,  because  the  standard  of  excellence  which  he 
set  brought  out  a  safer  and  more  durable  grade  of  electric 
apparatus  than  could  otherwise  have  been  brought  out; 
and  "navy  standard"  became  the  standard  that  was  set 
for  electric  work  all  over  the  United  States. 

My  first  attempt  was  to  adapt  electricity  to  firing  guns, 
continuing  the  work  of  others  in  this  field.  Two  objec 
tions  were  urged  against  it :  one,  that  electricity  was  too 
uncertain,  and  the  other  that,  although  a  man  could  fire 
a  gun  more  quickly  by  pressing  an  electric  button  than 
by  pulling  a  lanyard,  this  was  of  no  real  advantage,  for 
the  reason  that  the  conditions  of  firing  guns  on  ship 
board  were  such  that  the  man  could  not  tell  exactly  when 
the  sights  were  * '  on  the  target. ' '  I  did  my  best  to  over 
come  these  objections,  but  without  success;  so  that  the 
Atlanta,  Boston,  and  Chicago  were  not  equipped  for  elec 
tric  firing.  Of  course  all  ships  are  now  so  equipped,  and 
have  been  for  many  years. 

One  day  in  looking  over  the  ordnance  plans  of  the 
Atlanta,  and  seeing  no  range-finder  provided,  I  said  to 
Lieutenant  Buckingham : 

"Why  don't  you  put  a  range-finder  in  the  conning- 
tower?" 

To  this  he  made  the  surprising  answer: 

"If  you  will  tell  us  where  we  can  get  a  range-finder, 
we  '11  put  it  in. ' ' 

Further  conversation  with  him  developed  the  fact  that 
although  many  men  had  tried  to  invent  range-finders  for 
ships,  no  one  had  ever  yet  succeeded.  This  conversation 
was  a  fateful  one  for  me,  because  I  immediately  resolved 
to  invent  a  range-finder. 

Shortly  after  I  joined  the  bureau,  the  success  of  my 
book  led  me  to  think  that  it  would  be  well  for  me  to  re 
sign  and  go  into  electrical  work,  for  which  it  seemed  I  had 
some  aptitude.  So,  after  my  work  in  the  bureau  during 
the  day,  I  would  spend  the  most  of  the  time  in  studying 


86    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

electricity,  especially  the  mathematical  laws  which  gov 
erned  it.  Perhaps  this  was  a  foolish  thing  to  do,  but 
I  enjoyed  the  studies  intensely,  and  felt  that  keen  and 
peculiar  mental  stimulation  which  work  in  the  physical 
sciences  produces. 

In  Prescott's  book  on  the  "Electric  Telegraph"  was  a 
picture  of  Edison  using  a  "megaphone,"  which  was  an 
apparatus  comprising  one  long  trumpet  for  speaking 
through,  and  two  large  cone-shaped  receivers,  fitted  with 
rubber  tubes,  that  could  be  inserted  in  the  ears.  With 
the  approval  of  Commodore  Sicard,  I  made  a  series  of 
experiments  with  megaphones  at  the  navy-yard  in  Wash 
ington.  We  thought  that  very  large  megaphones  could 
be  made  that  would  not  only  help  us  to  hear,  but  also 
to  speak  over  long  distances.  Curiously,  the  principal 
value  of  hearing  was  to  be  the  detection  of  coming  tor 
pedo-boats.  I  remember  I  made  one  megaphone  that 
stood  about  ten  feet  high,  and  had  a  mouth  about  three 
feet  across,  and  that  a  man  wishing  to  use  it  would  put 
his  ear  or  his  mouth  at  the  bottom,  for  hearing  in  one 
case,  for  speaking  in  the  other.  The  results  were  cer 
tainly  interesting,  and  for  a  while  they  seemed  important. 
No  practical  result  of  value  was  obtained,  however,  the 
principal  reason  being  that  the  loudness  of  all  sounds 
was  amplified,  including  the  sounds  one  did  not  wish  to 
hear,  such  as  those  produced  by  the  wind.  A  very  effec 
tive  apparatus,  however,  along  the  lines  of  Edison's,  was 
mounted  soon  afterward,  on  my  recommendation,  on  top 
of  the  pilot-house  of  the  Atlanta.  The  megaphone  idea 
has  been  adopted,  of  course,  but  in  a  much  simplified 
form. 

In  March,  1885,  Mr.  Cleveland  became  President,  and 
Mr.  Whitney,  secretary  of  the  navy.  Mr.  Cleveland  was 
elected  with  the  assistance  of  the  so-called  "mugwumps," 
who  were  Republicans  who  revolted  against  Elaine. 
These  mugwumps  had  the  support  of  the  principal  daily 
newspapers  of  New  York  and  of  Harper's  Weekly, 


BUREAU  OF  ORDNANCE  87 

which  was  the  principal  weekly.  As  Mr.  Whitney  was  a 
New  York  man  with  a  wealthy  wife  and  influential  con 
nections,  he  entered  the  Navy  Department  under  excel 
lent  auspices.  Shortly  after  he  entered,  I  happened  to 
be  in  his  office  when  Rear-Admiral  Simpson  presented  the 
report  of  the  board  which  had  just  conducted  the  tests  of 
the  Dolphin — tests  which  the  board  reported  to  be  suc 
cessful.  I  did  not  hear  the  conversation  between  the 
secretary  and  Admiral  Simpson,  but  I  noticed  that  when 
Admiral  Simpson  went  out,  he  appeared  to  be  very  much 
astonished  and  crestfallen.  It  turned  out  later  that  the 
secretary  had  expressed  doubts  as  to  the  correctness  of 
the  report  of  the  board,  and  announced  his  intention  of 
investigating  the  matter. 

Mr.  Whitney  appointed  another  board  (some  described 
it  as  " picked"  and  others  as  "packed"),  and  that  board 
reported  the  Dolphin  as  "structurally  weak."  As  the 
contractor,  John  Roach,  was  the  same  man  who  was  then 
building  the  Atlanta,  Boston,  and  Chicago,  this  report 
and  the  attitude  of  the  secretary  resulted  in  the  bank 
ruptcy  of  John  Roach  and  a  long  delay  in  completing 
those  three  ships. 

The  navy  was  much  disheartened  by  the  action  of  the 
secretary,  because  in  their  opinion  all  the  vessels  were 
satisfactory ;  but  they  accepted  the  delay  with  that  obedi 
ence  to  superior  authority  which  is  and  always  has  been 
characteristic  of  our  army  and  navy;  in  fact,  of  all 
armies  and  navies. 

Of  course  we  now  know  that  the  action  was  most  re 
grettable  and  that  the  Dolphin  was  an  excellent  ship. 
She  made  a  cruise  of  58,000  miles  not  long  afterward, 
and  she  has  been  in  commission  most  of  the  time  ever 
since.  The  navy  as  a  whole  sided  with  John  Roach,  with 
out  whose  organization,  which  he  himself  had  built  up, 
the  ships  could  not  have  been  built  so  quickly;  but  the 
navy,  of  course,  was  powerless.  The  newspapers  sided 
with  the  secretary,  and  most  of  them  lauded  him.  The 


88    FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

reputation  which  he  got  then  he  never  lost,  and  one  some 
times  sees  the  extraordinary  statement  in  the  papers  that 
Mr.  Whitney  was  "the  father  of  the  new  navy"! 

Nobody  was  the  father  of  the  new  navy.  The  new  navy 
was  the  child  of  a  public  opinion  created  by  navy  officers. 
Excepting  navy  officers,  the  man  who  probably  did  more 
for  the  navy  than  any  other  one  man  was  Secretary 
Hunt,  who,  though  he  was  in  office  a  very  short  time, 
brought  about  the  establishment  of  the  first  naval  ad 
visory  board  for  the  express  purpose  of  producing  a 
new  navy.  Mr.  Chandler  followed  Mr.  Hunt,  and  both 
did  efficient  work;  but  both  were  only  instrumentalities 
for  influencing  Congress  and  the  President  to  do  what 
naval  officers  like  Luce,  Walker,  Sicard,  and  others  urged 
them  to  do.  Mr.  Whitney  came  into  office  after  the  Chi 
cago,  Atlanta,  Boston,  and  Dolphin  were  almost  finished, 
and  one  of  the  principal  acts  of  his  administration  was  to 
delay  their  completion  for  virtually  a  year. 

Mr.  Whitney  did  one  good  thing  for  the  navy,  and  that 
was  to  establish  the  "general  storekeeper  system." 
When  Mr.  Whitney  came  into  office,  each  bureau  had  in 
each  ship  and  each  navy-yard  its  own  stock  of  materials. 
As  some  of  the  materials  were  the  same  for  one  bureau 
as  for  the  others,  it  occurred  to  Mr.  Whitney,  as  a  man 
of  business,  that  it  would  be  better  to  have  all  the  navy 
department  supplies  in  each  navy-yard  and  each  ship 
under  the  charge  of  one  officer,  and  to  let  the  representa 
tives  of  each  bureau  in  each  navy-yard  and  ship  draw 
such  supplies  as  he  needed  from  time  to  time.  Mr.  Whit 
ney  met  with  some  natural  objections  on  the  part  of  cer 
tain  bureaus,  but  he  was  able  to  get  the  system  firmly 
established  before  he  left.  With  modifications,  it  has 
continued  ever  since. 

Some  time  in  the  spring  of  1885  two  gentlemen  called 
on  me  in  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  and  introduced  them 
selves  as  Professor  Houston  and  Mr.  Waugh  of  Philadel 
phia,  representing  the  Franklin  Institute.  These  gentle 
men  said  that  the  Franklin  Institute  was  arranging  to 


BUREAU  OF  ORDNANCE  89 

produce  an  International  Electrical  Exposition  in  Phila 
delphia  in  the  summer,  that  a  great  deal  of  money  had 
already  been  pledged,  that  a  number  of  the  greatest  elec 
tricians  in  the  world  had  promised  to  be  present  to  con 
stitute  an  electrical  conference,  and  that  they  had  come 
to  Washington  to  seek  the  cooperation  of  the  Govern 
ment,  especially  of  the  navy.  Of  course  I  saw  the  im 
portance  of  the  proposition  at  once,  and  I  told  them  that 
the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  had  more  electrical  apparatus  to 
show  than  did  any  other  part  of  the  Government,  and  that 
I  should  be  glad  to  help  all  I  could.  So  I  introduced 
them  to  Commodore  Sicard,  with  a  strong  recommenda 
tion  that  the  bureau  should  cooperate  by  making  an  ex 
hibit  in  the  exposition.  The  commodore  agreed  at  once, 
and  said  that  he  would  give  me  charge  of  the  exhibit. 

The  exposition  opened  about  the  first  of  September, 
and  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  had  one  of  the  best  exhibits 
shown.  The  Franklin  Institute  erected  a  large  building 
at  Thirty-third  and  Market  streets,  and  virtually  all  the 
electrical  companies  in  the  United  States  had  exhibits 
there.  The  stage  at  which  the  electrical  industry  had 
already  arrived  was  amazing.  I  think  the  Edison  Com 
pany  exhibit  was  the  largest,  but  the  exhibit  of  the  Bureau 
of  Ordnance  attracted  the  most  attention,  at  least  at  first. 
In  that  exhibit  there  were  three  search-lights,  and  one  of 
them  was  of  thirty-six  inches  in  diameter,  one  of  the 
largest  lights  existing  in  the  world.  This  was  hoisted  up 
into  a  tower  from  which  the  light  could  be  thrown  in  every 
direction.  Pretty  soon  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  made 
an  official  complaint  that  it  was  blinding  their  engineers, 
so  that  they  could  not  read  the  signals.  Not  long  after, 
I  received  a  letter  from  a  town  about  twenty  miles  dis 
tant,  saying  that  the  beam  of  the  light  had  suddenly  illu 
minated  the  proceedings  of  a  camp-meeting  of  colored 
people,  and  thrown  them  into  the  wildest  excitement; 
they  thought  that  the  day  of  judgment  had  arrived. 

Many  naval  and  army  officers  came  up  the  tower  to 
watch  the  light,  and  we  were  all  disappointed  that  we 


90    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

could  not  see  things  clearly  if  they  were  more  than  a  mile 
away.  At  first  we  did  not  understand  why  this  could  be, 
when  we  knew  that,  under  favorable  conditions,  people 
twenty  miles  away  could  see  the  beam  distinctly.  But 
we  soon  realized  that  if  any  one  sees  an  object,  he  sees 
it  because  of  the  light  reflected  from  it  or  from  the  back 
ground;  so  that  in  order  that  we  should  see  an  object  a 
mile  away,  the  object  would  have  to  be  illuminated  so 
brightly  as  to  reflect  back  rays  of  light  over  a  distance  of 
a  mile  with  sufficient  power  to  produce  the  phenomenon  of 
vision. 

The  exposition  continued  during  four  months  and  sup 
plied  to  vast  crowds  interesting  and  instructive  entertain 
ment  of  the  utmost  value.  Sir  William  Thompson,  Mr. 
Preece,  and  many  other  electricians  of  world-wide  fame 
enlightened  us  with  lectures,  and  many  new  inventions 
that  had  not  yet  become  established  were  presented  for 
the  consideration  of  the  conference  of  electricians,  of 
which  I  was  a  very  minor  member. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  in  this  class  was  the 
Sprague  Electric  Motor,  invented  by  Frank  J.  Sprague. 
Sprague  was  a  graduate  of  the  Naval  Academy  in  the 
class  four  years  after  mine  who  by  a  remarkable  system 
of  tests,  which  he  had  proposed  to  the  British  Electrical 
Exposition  in  London,  and  which  the  exposition  had 
adopted,  had  attracted  the  attention  of  electricians  every 
where,  among  them  Mr.  Edison.  Sprague  soon  after 
ward  resigned,  and  went  into  the  Edison  Company,  and 
later  established  the  Sprague  Electric  Motor  Company 
as  a  sort  of  annex  to  the  Edison  Company.  One  night 
after  the  exposition  had  closed,  a  dozen  or  twenty  of  us, 
including  Sprague,  were  drinking  beer  at  a  saloon  near 
by,  in  order  to  clear  our  minds  for  the  next  day's  work. 
We  got  into  an  argument  in  which  Sprague  was  on  one 
side  and  the  rest  of  us  were  on  the  other  side.  We  all 
declared  that,  while  Sprague  had  a  very  good  electric 
motor,  the  theory  on  which  he  had  built  it  was  scientifi 
cally  wrong.  Later  events  proved  that  Sprague  was  sci- 


91 

entifically  right  and  that  all  the  rest  of  us  were  scientifi 
cally  wrong. 

One  hot  afternoon  I  received  an  unexpected  call  from 
Allderdice  of  my  class,  who  had  resigned  and  gone  into 
engineering  work.  Allderdice  seemed  to  be  in  a  great 
hurry.  He  said  in  effect,  ''Now  come  along,  Fiske,  and 
run  up  to  New  York.  We  have  got  just  time  to  catch  the 
train.  I  am  in  with  a  company  that  has  an  electric  loco 
motive  head-light,  and  it  won't  work,  and  they  want  you 
to  fix  it  up.  The  directors  of  the  company  are  in  New 
York,  at  the  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  and  they  sent  me  down 
here  to  bring  you  up  for  dinner. ' ' 

I  went  with  Allderdice,  and  on  the  way  up  he  told  me 
that  he  had  told  his  friends  that  I  was  one  of  the  best 
electricians  in  the  United  States  and  that  he  knew  I  could 
make  their  lamp  work.     He  said  to  me : 

"I  w^ant  you  to  charge  them  a  good  round  sum  for 
doing  it,  because  they  won't  think  anything  of  you  unless 
you  do." 

I 1  How  much  do  you  think  I  ought  to  charge  them  ? "  I 
asked. 

"At  least  five  hundred  dollars,"  he  replied.  I  told 
him  I  could  not  do  that,  but  Allderdice  said  I  must. 

We  had  a  pleasant  dinner  and  after  dinner  "  talked 
business."  Finally  the  head  director  said: 

"Now,  Lieutenant,  in  case  you  get  this  lamp  working 
all  right,  how  much  will  you  charge  us  I " 

I  tried  to  say  five  hundred  dollars  but  I  couldn't.  I 
said  two  hundred,  to  the  intense  disgust  of  Allderdice. 

About  a  month  afterward  the  head  director  (I  think 
his  name  was  Wheeler)  brought  the  lamp  to  Philadel 
phia,  and  we  took  it  up  to  the  tower  where  the  big  search 
light  was.  As  soon  as  I  put  the  electric  current  through 
the  lamp  I  saw  that  there  was  nothing  whatever  the  mat 
ter  with  the  lamp  except  that  one  of  the  springs  needed 
to  be  tightened  a  little,  which  could  be  done  by  turning 
an  adjusting-screw  on  the  lamp.  I  told  Mr.  Wheeler  this, 
and  demonstrated  the  truth  of  my  statement  by  simply 


92    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

turning  the  adjusting-screw  and  showing  that  the  lamp 
then  burned  perfectly.  The  whole  operation  did  not  take 
five  minutes.  Mr.  Wheeler  said,  "Well,  I'll  be 
damned!"  and  put  his  hand  into  his  trousers  pocket  and 
pulled  out  a  roll  of  bills,  which  he  handed  to  me.  I  pro 
tested  ;  but  he  insisted  that  I  had  earned  it,  and  so  I  took 
it.  On  counting  the  roll  afterward,  I  found  that  it  con 
tained  just  two  hundred  dollars.  I  spent  seventy-five 
dollars  of  it  to  buy  a  watch,  and  I  have  carried  that  watch 
from  that  day  to  this. 

During  the  latter  part  of  my  stay  in  the  Bureau  of  Ord 
nance  I  was  asked  by  The  Popular  Science  Monthly  to 
write  an  article  on  the  "Electric  Railway."  My  article 
was  one  of  the  first  articles  that  had  appeared  in  a  maga 
zine  of  high  standing  on  this  subject,  and  it  received  a 
good  deal  of  attention.  It  received  attention,  however, 
more  as  indicating  possibilities  than  probabilities,  and 
most  people  thought  it  went  much  further  along  the  line 
of  imagination  than  was  compatible  with  good  judgment. 
Of  course  the  actual  performance  of  the  electric  railway 
has  been  much  greater  than  I  predicted. 

In  October,  1885, 1  was  ordered  to  the  U.  S.  S.  Brooklyn, 
then  fitting  for  sea  at  the  navy-yard  in  Brooklyn.  Sicard 
wanted  me  to  be  held  for  the  Atlanta  on  account  of  my 
experience  with  her  ordnance  equipment,  and  the  fact  that 
her  ordnance  equipment  was  of  so  novel  a  kind  that  the 
other  officers  of  the  ship  could  not  at  first  know  much 
about  it.  But  the  Atlanta  was  so  long  delayed  that  it 
was  considered  best  to  send  me  to  sea,  as  I  had  been  on 
shore  three  years,  and  to  transfer  me  later  to  the  Atlanta. 

The  Brooklyn  went  into  commission,  and  shortly  after 
ward  we  went  to  Newport,  Rhode  Island,  to  make  certain 
experiments  in  regard  to  what  is  called  the  "tactical  di 
ameter."  Our  orders  were  to  ascertain  the  best  method 
of  determining  this.  The  tactical  diameter  is,  generally 
speaking,  the  diameter  of  the  approximate  circle  in  which 
a  ship  turns  round.  It  was  very  cold  work.  In  carrying 
on  our  experiments,  the  Brooklyn  would  go  into  the  large 


THE  BROOKLYN  93 

sheet  of  water  north  of  Gould  Island,  while  various  ob 
servers  on  shore  and  in  boats  would  "plot  the  track"  she 
was  making  in  the  water.  My  station  was  at  the  northern 
end  of  Gould  Island.  I  had  with  me  about  half  a  dozen 
men.  The  northern  end  of  the  island  ended  in  a  bluff, 
which  ran  down  precipitately  into  the  bay.  I  planted 
my  theodolite  close  to  the  edge  of  this  precipice,  and  spent 
most  of  my  time  looking  through  its  little  telescope  at  the 
ship.  We  carried  on  these  observations  for  many  days, 
and  finally  our  last  observation  was  about  to  be  made.  A 
sailor  stood  beside  me  with  a  red  flag,  and  I  told  him  to 
make  a  certain  signal  to  the  ship  with  it.  Then  I  put  my 
eye  to  the  telescope,  with  my  back  towards  Gould  Island. 
Suddenly  I  heard  a  curious  thump,  thump  close  behind 
me.  Turning  around  quickly,  I  saw  a  bull  hardly  three 
feet  away,  with  his  fore  feet  planted  on  the  ground  in  an 
effort  to  save  himself  from  going  over  the  bluff,  which 
he  seemed  to  have  just  discerned.  Then  the  bull  gal 
loped  away,  his  strong  fore  legs  having  saved  one  bull 
and  one  man  from  an  uncomfortable  cold  plunge  together. 

We  were  glad  to  leave  after  Christmas,  and  go  to  New 
York.  The  work  that  we  had  been  doing  was  very  monot 
onous,  and  as  the  winter  was  unusually  cold,  it  was  very 
disagreeable.  I  remember  being  impressed  with  the 
hardships  of  the  lives  of  the  men  in  the  coasting  schooners 
during  the  winter-times.  The  schooners  which  would 
come  into  Narragansett  Bay  were  covered  with  ice  from 
the  heads  of  the  masts,  over  the  sails  and  rigging,  down 
to  the  decks,  and  over  the  sides.  Cold  weather  is  some 
times  trying  on  shore,  but  it  is  much  more  so  at  sea,  where 
the  wind  usually  blows  with  greater  force,  and  cold  water 
is  dashed  over  the  face  and  hands. 

On  the  first  of  January,  1886, 1  was  detached  from  the 
Brooklyn,  an  old  ship  like  the  Pensacola,  with  sails  and 
old-fashioned  guns  and  engines,  and  ordered  to  John 
Eoach's  shipyard  at  the  foot  of  East  Ninth  Street,  New 
York,  to  supervise  the  installation  of  the  ordnance  equip 
ment  of  the  Atlanta.  Naturally  I  made  the  acquaintance 


94    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

of  John  Roach,  and  I  found  him  to  be  a  very  interesting 
old  man,  though  broken  in  health  since  the  episode  of  the 
Dolphin.  Whenever  he  saw  me  passing,  he  would  beckon 
to  me,  and  talk  about  navy  matters  and  ship  construc 
tion  ;  but  before  he  got  through,  he  was  sure  to  talk  about 
the  Dolphin  and  burst  into  tears.  He  had  been  a  molder, 
and  had  risen  to  his  almost  great  position  by  his  own 
exertions,  directed  by  his  abilities  and  pushed  forward 
by  his  character.  With  me  he  would  talk  as  grammati 
cally  and  correctly  as  anybody  would,  but  I  noticed  with 
interest  that  whenever  he  talked  with  any  of  his  work 
men,  he  would  talk  as  they  did.  For  instance,  he  would 
say,  "them  rivets."  One  day  as  we  were  walking 
through  his  yard  together,  he  said : 

"Mr.  Fiske,  do  you  see  that  man  walking  ahead  of  us?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Do  you  know  who  he  is!" 

"Yes,  sir;  that  's  Mr.  Sickles." 

"Do  you  know  anything  about  him?" 

"Oh,  yes,  sir,  he  invented  the  Sickles  cut-off.  Besides 
that,  he  is  the  first  inventor  of  the  steam  steering  en 
gine.  He  is  a  very  remarkable  man. ' ' 

"Yes,"  said  John  Roach,  "he  is  a  very  remarkable 
man.  The  most  remarkable  thing  about  him  is  that  he 
was  never  known  to  do  a  thing  right  the  first  time.  I 
know,  because  I  have  had  to  pay  for  his  experiments." 

Some  time  in  July,  1886,  the  Atlanta  was  towed  from 
John  Roach's  yard  up  the  East  River  to  the  dock  at  the 
navy-yard,  Brooklyn.  Shortly  after,  she  was  put  into 
commission.  The  work  of  making  her  equipments,  espe 
cially  the  ordnance  equipments,  had  gone  along  so  slowly 
that  she  was  not  at  all  ready ;  but  as  the  officers  and  men 
were  all  ready,  it  was  considered  best  to  put  the  ship  into 
commission  and  have  the  officers  and  men  live  and  work 
on  board. 

The  Atlanta  was  the  first  ship  of  the  new  navy,  for  al 
though  the  Dolphin  preceded  the  Atlanta,  the  Dolphin 
was  called  a  "despatch-vessel"  and  was  so  rather  than 


THE  ATLANTA  95 

a  man-of-war.  The  Atlanta  had  a  displacement  of  only 
3000  tons,  some  sail  power,  and  only  one  propeller  or 
screw.  Since  then  we  have  had  ships  of  gradually  in 
creasing  size,  battle-ships,  battle-cruisers,  submarines, 
etc.;  but  each  one  of  the  ships  that  has  followed  the 
Atlanta  has  been  a  change  only  in  degree  from  ships  be 
fore  her,  and  not  a  change  in  type,  at  least  not  so  sudden 
a  change  in  type  as  was  the  Atlanta.  The  Atlanta  was 
the  first  United  States  ship  to  have  modern  ordnance, 
search-lights,  and  protective  deck,  and  to  conform  in  gen 
eral  to  the  changes  in  naval  construction  and  ordnance 
that  had  come  about  in  the  foreign  navies  during  the  pre 
ceding  twenty  years.  We  were  all  very  proud,  officers 
and  enlisted  men  alike,  of  being  ordered  to  the  Atlanta. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

CEUISING   IN    THE   ATLANTA 

WE  found  a  great  deal  of  difficulty  in  installing  the 
ordnance  equipment  in  the  Atlanta,  principally 
because  there  were  then  no  men  experienced  in  this  kind 
of  work,  and  because  some  of  the  ordnance  material  sup 
plied  was  not  good  in  all  ways.  Finally  we  got  all  the 
gun-carriages  and  guns  into  place,  however,  and  then  we 
went  out  to  sea  to  try  them.  The  guns  worked  perfectly 
well,  and  so  did  the  carriages ;  but  we  had  some  difficulty 
at  first  in  keeping  the  men  close  enough  to  the  guns,  as 
many  of  them  were  found  to  be  "  gun-shy. ' ' 

At  one  time,  during  a  pause  in  the  firing,  the  chief 
boatswain's  mate,  a  handsome  man  named  Davis,  who 
was  standing  on  the  upper  deck,  saw  a  rope  hanging  down 
from  the  end  of  one  of  the  boat-davits.  To  a  seaman's 
eye  this  was  painful;  but  Davis  did  not  like  to  go  out 
to  get  hold  of  the  rope  and  pull  it  in,  because  he  was 
afraid  that  a  gun  near  the  davit,  the  muzzle  of  which  he 
could  see  sticking  out  from  the  deck  below,  might  be  fired ; 
still  less  did  he  like  to  order  another  man  to  do  it.  After 
hesitating  for  a  few  minutes,  the  seaman's  instinct  pre 
vailed  over  prudence,  and  he  ventured  outside  of  the 
ship  and  took  hold  of  the  rope.  Just  as  he  did  so  the 
gun  was  fired.  The  shock  to  Davis  was  tremendous ;  but 
we  got  him  in  on  deck,  and  he  soon  recovered.  But  his 
clothes  did  not  recover.  The  day  was  cold,  and  he  had 
on  a  navy  overcoat.  Now,  an  explosion  causes  a  rapid 
alternation  of  increased  and  decreased  pressure  of  the 
air.  Of  course  air  was  inside  of  Davis'  clothes  as  well 
as  outside ;  and  the  result  of  the  unbalanced  pressure  was 
to  tear  his  clothes  literally  to  shreds.  I  have  never  seen 

96 


CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA  97 

anything  like  it  before  or  since.  If  some  one  had  taken  a 
pair  of  large  shears  and  cut  all  his  clothes  from  top  to 
bottom  into  strips  about  an  inch  wide,  the  result,  to  all 
appearance,  would  have  been  the  same. 

Later,  that  afternoon,  I  was  standing  on  the  port  side 
of  the  gun-deck  aft,  when  the  six-inch  gun  near  me  was 
fired.  I  was  not  far  from  the  muzzle ;  and  the  gun  seemed 
to  shoot  right  through  my  left  ear.  I  executed  an  imita 
tion  of  the  Highland  Fling  for  a  few  seconds;  but  the 
intense  pain  passed  away  soon,  and  in  a  few  minutes  I 
found  I  had  suffered  no  apparent  harm.  But  my  hear 
ing  has  never  been  quite  so  good  since  in  that  ear. 

The  fastenings  on  the  deck  by  which  the  gun-carriages 
were  secured  there  were  made  of  bronze.  The  firing 
demonstrated  the  fact  that  bronze  was  not  strong  enough. 
So  we  went  back  to  the  navy-yard  and  stayed  there  for  a 
considerable  time,  while  steel  tracks  and  fittings  were 
being  made  with  which  to  replace  the  bronze  ones.  The 
steel  parts  were  then  put  in,  and  after  that  we  had  no 
further  difficulty  with  our  ordnance  equipment.  But  we 
had  a  great  deal  of  trouble  in  getting  the  horse-power 
required  by  the  contract  from  our  main  engines.  This 
was  finally  accomplished,  however,  and  the  Atlanta  was 
pronounced  a  great  success. 

About  this  time  my  promotion  to  the  grade  of  lieuten 
ant  became  due,  and  I  was  ordered  to  examination  for 
promotion.  I  had  no  difficulty  in  passing  the  moral, 
mental,  and  professional  parts,  but  the  doctors  shook 
their  heads  when  they  listened  to  my  heart.  Like  the 
doctors  on  my  preceding  examination,  they  said  I  had 
organic  heart  disease,  but  that  the  disease  had  not  pro 
gressed  far  enough  to  warrant  their  rejecting  me.  This 
was  some  comfort  to  me ;  but  it  was  the  kind  of  comfort 
that  is  sometimes  called  cold. 

While  in  the  Atlanta  I  did  a  good  deal  of  experiment 
ing  in  electricity.  I  became  much  interested  in  what  we 
now  call  " wireless  telegraphy,"  or  " radio  telegraphy," 
but  which  we  then  called  ' '  signaling  by  induction. ' '  Our 


98    FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

captain  was  Francis  M.  Bunce,  one  of  the  finest  men  I 
have  ever  known,  and  he  helped  me  as  much  as  he  could 
in  getting  the  Navy  Department  to  let  me  have  a  little 
money  now  and  then  with  which  to  get  the  electrical  appa 
ratus  made.  Bunce  had  made  a  splendid  record  during 
the  Civil  War,  but  occasional  lapses  from  the  path  of 
strict  sobriety  had  prevented  him  from  getting  the  pro 
motion  that  otherwise  would  have  been  given  him. 

Later  he  became  commander-in-chief  of  the  North  At 
lantic  Fleet,  and  the  navy  was  delighted  at  this,  because  it 
was  at  a  time  (about  1896)  when  war  with  Spain  seemed 
probable,  and  we  felt  that  Bunce  was  the  best  man  we  had 
to  command  in  war.  We  deplored  his  occasional  lapses, 
but  we  were  of  the  opinion  that,  even  if  their  unfavorable 
effect  had  been  greater  than  it  was,  Bunce  would  still 
have  enough  left  in  his  favor  to  make  him  a  better  com 
mander-in-chief  than  any  other  man  we  had.  Unfortu 
nately,  when  war  finally  did  break  out  with  Spain  in 
1898,  the  secretary  of  the  navy,  while  a  most  excellent 
and  admirable  gentleman,  was  a  man  with  such  ideas  re 
garding  total  abstinence  that  he  could  not  see  all  the 
characteristics  of  men  in  their  correct  shapes  and  sizes. 
To  him  occasional  insobriety  was  not  so  much  a  fault  in 
a  man  as  the  one  great  fault.  According  to  his  estimate, 
a  tendency  of  this  kind  overbalanced  whatever  great 
qualities  a  man  might  have,  and  made  that  man  a  liability 
to  the  human  race  and  not  an  asset.  Captain  Sampson 
was  made  commander-in-chief,  with  the  rank  of  rear- 
admiral,  and  put  over  the  head  of  Schley,  who  had  been 
his  senior  during  all  their  professional  lives.  The  result 
was  the  notorious  " Sampson-Schley  Controversy"  which 
did  the  navy  so  great  a  harm  as  to  be  incalculable.  Of 
course  Sampson  was  one  of  the  best  officers  the  navy  ever 
produced ;  but  he  did  not  have  the  qualities  of  leadership 
that  Bunce  had  and,  besides,  his  health  was  delicate. 
True,  he  won  the  Battle  of  Santiago,  and  should  be  ac 
corded  all  due  credit  for  it.  But  Bunce  would  have  won 
the  battle  just  as  gloriously,  and  would  have  aroused  the 


CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA  99 

enthusiasm  of  the  people  instead  of  chilling  it;  with  the 
result  that  the  establishment  of  the  navy  upon  an  ade 
quate  basis  would  have  been  made  much  easier  than  it 
really  was  after  the  disastrous  Sampson-Schley  Con 
troversy. 

But  to  return  to  the  Atlanta  and  the  year  1887.  At 
this  time  there  were  several  men  experimenting  in  sig 
naling  by  induction,  notably  Edison,  Nikola  Tesla,  Pro 
fessor  Dolbear  of  Tufts  College,  and  some  others,  among 
whom  was  my  humble  self.  In  one  of  my  experiments  I 
wrapped  several  coils  of  wire  around  the  Atlanta,  and 
sent  a  current  through  the  coils,  which  I  could  make  and 
break;  and  I  also  wrapped  the  steel  tug  Nina  with  coils 
of  fine  wire  with  a  telephone  in  the  circuit.  The  main 
current  on  board  the  Atlanta  being  made  and  broken,  I 
could  hear  the  "makes  and  breaks"  in  my  telephone  in 
the  Nina,  but  not  over  sufficient  distances  to  be  of  any 
practical  value.  Sylvanus  Thompson's  book  on  "Elec 
trical  Engineering"  mentioned  me  as  having  made  the 
largest  electro  magnet  in  the  world — a  3000  ton  electro 
magnet,  the  Atlanta.  I  had  considerable  correspondence 
with  Prof.  Dolbear  and  I  carried  out  as  best  I  could  the 
recommendations  he  made  to  me  in  regard  to  the  scientific 
proportions  of  my  apparatus.  President  Henry  Morton 
of  Stevens  Institute  also  became  interested  even  to  the 
extent  of  letting  me  cut  all  the  lightning-rods  on  the  insti 
tute  in  two.  I  think  they  remained  so  for  three  days, 
when  finally  I  had  the  broken  parts  soldered  together 
again.  I  did  not  get  clear  indications  for  much  more 
than  fifty  feet. 

Then  I  tried  to  signal  through  the  water.  I  immersed 
two  large  plates  of  copper  in  the  water ;  one  plate  a  con 
siderable  distance  ahead  of  the  Atlanta,  and  the  other  a 
considerable  distance  astern.  Then,  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  stream,  on  the  cobdock  side,  I  immersed  two  simi 
lar  plates,  connected  by  fine  wire  in  circuit  with  a  tele 
phone.  The  distance  across  was  about  two  hundred 
yards,  and  I  could  hear  perfectly  well  whenever  the  cur- 


100    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

rent  was  made  and  broken  on  board  the  Atlanta,  a  large 
enough  quantity  of  the  "divided  circuit"  coming  across 
and  going  through  my  wire  and  telephone. 

Ensign  Dana  Greene  helped  me  in  these  experiments. 
He  was  a  son  of  the  Lieutenant  Greene  who  took  com 
mand  of  the  Monitor  after  Worden  was  disabled  in  the 
fight  with  the  Merrimac,  and  he  was  also  a  nephew  of  the 
present  General  Francis  Vinton  Greene.  He  had  gradu 
ated  at  the  head  of  his  class  at  the  Naval  Academy,  and 
was  a  wholly  admirable  young  man.  Shortly  after  this 
I  was  able  to  get  Greene,  who  wished  to  resign,  a  position 
with  the  Sprague  Electric  Company,  from  which  he 
finally  went  to  the  General  Electric  Company  at  Sche- 
nectady.  He  married  a  daughter  of  Commodore  Chan 
dler  of  our  navy.  One  afternoon  in  1900,  when  he  and 
his  wife  were  skating  on  the  Hudson,  they  fell  into  a  hole 
in  the  ice  and  drowned  together.  At  this  time  I  was 
coming  across  the  Pacific  with  a  present  for  Mrs.  Greene, 
which  her  sister  had  handed  to  me  in  Yokohama. 

One  afternoon  I  thought  I  had  made  a  great  discovery. 
Greene  and  I  made  a  trip  along  the  East  River  in  the 
steel  tug  Nina,  towing  a  copper  plate  by  an  insulated 
wire,  in  the  circuit  of  which  was  a  telephone;  while  on 
board  the  Atlanta  a  current  of  electricity  was  kept  going 
through  the  wire  to  the  plates  immersed  ahead  and  astern 
of  the  ship,  and  through  the  water  between  them.  I  knew 
from  Preece's  experiments  in  England,  in  which  he  sig 
naled  through  the  water  from  England  to  the  Isle  of 
Wight,  that  a  current  spread  out  a  good  deal  in  going 
from  one  plate  to  another  in  the  water;  and  I  hoped  to 
pick  up  some  of  it  on  board  the  tug.  On  the  afternoon  in 
question  I  told  the  electrician  on  board  the  Atlanta  not 
to  break  the  current,  but  to  keep  it  going  continuously, 
and  that  I  would  make  and  break  the  current  in  the  wire 
on  board  the  tug.  So  Greene  and  I  stood  in  the  cabin 
of  the  tug,  he  listening  at  the  telephone  and  I  working 
a  telegraph  key  in  front  of  him.  I  shall  never  forget  the 
blissful  smile  on  Greene's  handsome  face  as  we  were 


CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA.  101 

steaming  away  from  the  Atlanta,  getting  at  greater  and 
greater  distances,  while  he  kept  saying,  "Yes,  I  hear  a 
click  every  time  you  press  the  key."  Finally  I  said, 
"You  don't  hear  it  as  strong  now  as  you  did  at  first,  do 
you!"  "Yes,  sir;  I  think  I  do."  At  last,  after  we  had 
steamed  about  two  miles  away,  and  his  indications  were 
as  strong  as  ever,  I  became  confident  that  a  horrible  sus 
picion  which  had  been  rising  in  my  mind  was  well 
founded;  and  so  I  said:  "Greene,  we  're  a  pair  of 
d.f 's.  If  that  current  came  from  the  Atlanta,  it  would 
be  getting  weaker  and  weaker.  What  we  hear  is  some 
current  in  our  own  wire.  I  believe  that  the  sea-water  out 
here  and  those  two  plates  in  the  water  constitute  an  elec 
tric  battery  strong  enough  to  send  a  current  through  our 
wire  and  actuate  the  telephone."  Subsequent  investiga 
tion  showed  that  this  was  true. 

The  Atlanta  made  a  cruise  of  four  months  to  the  West 
Indies  and  back.  One  bright,  hot  afternoon  in  St. 
Thomas  some  of  us  went  into  the  telegraph  office  in  the 
town  of  Charlotte  Amalia  to  see  if  there  was  any  news, 
and  we  were  shown  a  cable  from  New  York,  saying  that 
there  was  a  tremendous  blizzard  there,  that  the  snow 
was  so  deep  that  all  traffic  was  suspended  and  that  peo 
ple  were  dying  in  the  streets.  We  did  not  believe  this 
at  all,  but  we  afterward  found  that  the  account  was  true. 
The  date  was  March  12,  1888. 

We  went  to  Colon,  which  was  still  called  Aspinwall. 
We  found  it  considerably  changed  from  the  Aspinwall  of 
1876,  because  thousands  of  French  and  Chinese  were 
working  on  the  Panama  Canal.  A  feverish  and  un 
healthy  activity  pervaded  the  hot  little  town.  Gambling- 
saloons  and  drinking-saloons  lined  both  sides  of  the  prin 
cipal  streets;  people  of  all  nationalities  hurried  hither 
and  thither,  and  the  conditions  of  health  were  such  that 
one  was  reminded  of  the  sentence  in  the  Bible,  "Pesti 
lence  walketh  in  the  noonday. ' '  Chagres  fever,  malaria, 
and  yellow  fever  were  the  principal  diseases;  but  de 
lirium  tremens  and  the  results  of  gambling  and  over- 


102    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

drinking  were  present  in  addition.  I  remember  a  gen 
eral  picture  at  once  exciting,  brilliant,  attractive,  and 
forbidding.  Only  one  moving-picture  stands  out  clearly 
in  my  mind,  and  that  is  of  a  young  negro  woman  being 
driven  rapidly  through  the  streets  in  a  wagon  under  the 
charge  of  two  policemen.  She  was  raving  and  yelling 
at  the  top  of  her  voice,  and  trying  to  tear  off  her  clothes. 
They  told  me  that  that  was  what  the  women  always 
tried  to  do  there  when  they  were  drunk.  Some  of  us 
agreed  in  conversation  that  Aspinwall  came  the  nearest 
to  our  ideas  of  hell  of  any  place  we  had  ever  seen. 

We  went  from  Aspinwall  to  New  Orleans,  and  found 
the  change  delightful.  We  were  in  company  with  another 
ship,— I  think  the  Ossipee,—  and  the  night  before  we  en 
tered  the  passes,  we  used  our  megaphone  with  excellent 
effect  to  give  an  order  orally  to  the  Ossipee  to  rectify  a 
mistake  she  had  made  in  reading  a  signal. 

One  afternoon  we  gave  a  dance  on  board  the  Atlanta, 
and  I  met  a  pretty  young  lady  with  whom  I  had  several 
dances.     She  asked  to  see  my  room.     On  my  bureau  was 
a  picture  of  my  wife  and  six  pictures  of  my  little  daugh 
ter  at  various  ages.     She  said: 
1  'Is  that  your  wife?" 
"Yes,"  I  replied. 

"Are  all  those  your  children?"  she  asked. 
"Yes,"  I  said. 

"I  might  stand  the  wife,  but  I  can't  stand  all  those 
children,"  she  then  said. 

We  had  joined  the  squadron  of  Admiral  Luce,  and  the 
ships  were  anchored  one  behind  another  in  the  swift 
current  of  the  Mississippi.  One  afternoon,  a  tremendous 
storm  of  wind,  rain,  and  thunder  came  up  just  as  a  tow 
of  tugs  and  barges  reached  a  spot  a  short  distance  ahead 
of  the  Atlanta.  Exactly  what  happened  to  the  tow  I  do 
not  know ;  but  I  know  that  two  large  barges  drifted  down 
with  tremendous  force  on  the  Atlanta  and  carried  her 
astern  helplessly,  just  missing  the  Ossipee  astern  of  us 
by  a  small  margin.  We  let  go  an  additional  anchor  with- 


CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA  103 

out  avail  at  first,  but  we  finally  brought  up  near  the  navy- 
yard  in  shoaler  water. 

From  New  Orleans  we  went  north,  and  finally  to  the 
navy-yard  in  Brooklyn.  Some  time  before  joining  the 
Atlanta  I  had  invented  a  mechanical  lead-pencil  the  char 
acteristics  of  which  I  do  not  now  recall.  I  assigned  the 
patent  to  the  American  Lead  Pencil  Company,  and  they 
put  the  pencil  on  the  market.  One  forenoon,  while  I  was 
officer  of  the  deck  of  the  Atlanta,  alongside  of  the  dock 
at  the  navy-yard  in  Brooklyn,  a  gentleman  came  on  board, 
and  introduced  himself  to  me  as  a  representative  of  the 
American  Lead  Pencil  Company.  He  said  that  my  lead- 
pencil  was  not  selling  very  well,  but  that  he  was  author 
ized  by  the  company  to  offer  me  two  hundred  dollars 
for  the  patent!  Two  hundred  dollars!  There  was  not 
anything  in  the  world  I  wanted  so  much  just  then 
as  two  hundred  dollars — except  a  larger  sum.  So  I 
said: 

"When  will  you  give  me  the  two  hundred  dollars?" 

He  said: 

"I  '11  give  it  to  you  right  now,  if  you  wish :  I  have  a 
check-book  in  my  pocket,  and  the  papers  all  ready  for 
you  to  sign."  I  hurried  him  into  the  chart-house,  fear 
ing  that  he  would  get  away ;  and  we  put  the  whole  oper 
ation  through  in  about  two  minutes.  I  think  the  lead- 
pencil  sold  better  after  that. 

During  the  ten  years  that  had  elapsed  since  my  con 
ception  of  telegraphing  printed  words  I  had  been  think 
ing  a  good  deal  about  the  subject.  One  afternoon  in 
New  York,  while  the  Atlanta  was  at  the  navy-yard,  I 
stood  watching  analytically  the  operations  of  a  stock- 
ticker,  when  an  idea  came  to  me  by  which  I  thought  I 
could  improve  stock-tickers  tremendously.  I  set  about 
the  task  at  once,  and  in  a  few  days  I  called  at  the  offices 
of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  with  a  sheet 
of  paper  on  which  there  were  some  diagrams.  I  was 
ushered  into  the  office  of  the  vice-president  and  general 
manager,  Thomas  C.  Eckert,  who  afterwards  became  the 


104     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

president.  I  showed  him  the  diagrams,  and  he  said  to  me 
politely : 

"I  see  your  idea,  and  it  looks  to  me  like  an  extremely 
good  one.  I  wonder  that  no  one  has  thought  of  it  before. 
But,  you  know,  I  cannot  really  do  anything  with  it.  If 
the  Western  Union  Company  were  to  adopt  this  scheme 
of  yours,  we  should  have  to  throw  away  all  our  stock- 
tickers,  and  lose  over  a  million  dollars.  But  if  you  take 
this  to  some  other  company,  they  might  put  it  on  the 
market  and  give  us  no  end  of  trouble.  That  is  n't  likely; 
but  at  the  same  time,  I  am  willing  to  buy  it  from  you  for 
some  small  sum.  How  much  do  you  want?" 

I  was  expecting  something  like  this,  and  so  I  said, 

"I  'd  like  ten  thousand  dollars." 

"Of  course  you  would,"  said  General  Eckert,  "but 
I  'm  not  going  to  give  you  ten  thousand  dollars.  I  '11 
tell  you  what  I  '11  do ;  I  '11  give  you  seven  hundred  dol- 
'lars  for  it  as  soon  as  we  get  the  patent.  We  will  pay 
the  expenses  of  the  patent,  so  you  will  be  seven  hundred 
dollars  to  the  good." 

I  agreed  at  once,  and  we  signed  the  papers.  There 
was  little  trouble  in  getting  the  patent,  and  I  received 
the  seven  hundred  dollars  about  a  year  later. 

On  my  way  back  to  the  ship,  I  conceived  another  idea 
which  seemed  to  be  very  much  better;  and  just  a  week 
later,  I  presented  myself  before  General  Eckert  again 
with  another  diagram.  General  Eckert  said : 

"Are  you  going  to  come  over  here  once  a  week  to  get 
seven  hundred  dollars'?" 

"No,  sir,"  I  said;  "but  I  'd  like  seven  hundred  dollars 
this  time." 

He  took  a  pad  of  paper  in  his  hand  and  wrote  on  it 
slowly  with  a  lead-pencil,  "I  will  give  you  $100,"  and 
showed  it  to  me. 

"When  will  you  give  me  the  hundred  dollars?"  I  asked. 

"Right  now,"  he  replied. 

"Before  the  patent  is  granted?"  I  asked. 

"Yes,  before  you  leave  this  room,"  he  answered. 


CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA  105 

I  agreed  to  this,  and  we  signed  the  necessary  papers. 

The  man  who  brought  in  the  papers  to  sign  was  Mr. 
C.  L.  Buckingham,  the  patent  attorney  of  the  company. 
About  a  year  later  I  got  a  note  from  Buckingham,  say 
ing  that  he  was  having  a  little  trouble  in  getting  my  sec 
ond  application  papers  through,  and  that  he  would  like 
me  to  take  lunch  with  him  at  Delmonico's  and  talk  over 
the  matter.  We  had  an  excellent  luncheon,  during  which 
Buckingham  said  that  what  he  wanted  me  to  do  was  to 
testify  under  oath  as  to  certain  facts  connected  with  my 
conception  of  the  idea.  He  added: 

"Of  course  you  testify  as  an  expert,  and  we  will  pay 
you  at  the  usual  rates." 

"What  would  the  usual  rate  be  in  a  case  like  this?"  I 
asked. 

"About  two  hundred  dollars,"  he  replied. 

"Do  you  mean  that  you  will  give  me  two  hundred  dol 
lars  if  I  will  testify  in  this  matter?"  I  asked. 

Buckingham  said:  "Yes,  that  is  the  usual  procedure." 

So  I  went  to  Buckingham's  office  after  lunch,  took  the 
usual  oath,  and  then  stated  the  facts  connected  with  my 
conception  of  the  idea.  Then  Buckingham  handed  me  a 
check  for  the  two  hundred  dollars. 

About  a  year  later  this  procedure  was  repeated  almost 
precisely. 

Two  or  three  years  after  that,  when  I  was  in  the  York- 
town,  we  anchored  at  Sandy  Point  in  the  Strait  of  Ma 
gellan,  and  the  mail  came  on  board  with  a  letter  for  me 
from  Buckingham.  Buckingham's  letter  asked  me  to 
sign  some  papers,  which  he  inclosed,  if  I  could  do  so  with 
propriety,  and  to  send  him  the  bill.  I  was  not  able  to 
do  this  until  we  got  to  San  Francisco  several  months 
later,  because  a  notary  public  was  required.  Then  I 
signed  the  papers,  and  sent  in  a  bill  for  two  hundred  dol 
lars.  A  check  for  that  amount  came  back  by  return 
mail. 

About  two  years  later  I  met  Buckingham  by  chance  on 
Broadway.  He  told  me  he  had  been  able  to  secure  a 


106    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

strong  basic  patent  on  my  second  printing  telegraph,  and 
that  he  had  tried  to  get  the  Western  Union  Telegraph 
Company  to  adopt  my  telegraph  to  the  exclusion  of  all 
others,  but  without  success.  He  said  that,  although  my 
system  had  the  disadvantage  of  needing  three  wires  in 
stead  of  two,  it  was  very  much  more  rapid  and  less 
apt  to  make  mistakes;  because  the  type  wheel  jumped 
instantly  from  one  letter  to  another  instead  of  going 
slowly  by  pulsations.  Buckingham  added  that  he  had 
left  the  company,  was  devoting  all  his  time  and  money  to 
my  invention,  and  that  he  had  a  line  in  operation  between 
New  York  and  Chicago  which  was  working  very  well, 
though  still  experimentally. 

About  a  year  after  that  I  met  Buckingham  again  by 
chance.  He  said  that  he  had  been  operating  my  printing 
telegraph  between  Paris  and  Berlin,  but  that  the  estab 
lished  telegraph  companies  in  the  United  States  and 
Europe  had  been  too  strong  for  him,  and  that  he  had 
finally  been  compelled  to  give  up.  I  said:  "Mr.  Buck 
ingham,  I  'm  dreadfully  sorry ;  you  must  have  lost  a  good 
deal  of  money  on  my  account. ' '  Buckingham  answered : 
"It  has  cost  me  about  three  hundred  thousand  dollars. 
Of  course  I  am  sorry  that  I  lost  the  money,  but  I  am  not 
sorry  at  all  that  I  went  into  the  scheme.  I  am  only  sorry 
I  was  not  able  to  put  it  through. ' ' 

That  was  the  last  time  I  ever  saw  Buckingham.  He  be 
came  a  very  successful  practitioner  of  patent  law  in  New 
York,  and  died  about  ten  years  later. 

A  great  part  of  the  next  summer  we  spent  in  Narra- 
gansett  Bay,  off  Newport,  near  the  war  college,  which 
Admiral  Luce  had  persuaded  the  Navy  Department  to 
establish,  which  was  the  first  naval  war  college  ever  es 
tablished  by  any  nation,  and  of  which  he  had  persuaded 
Commander  Mahan  to  undertake  the  presidency.  Luce, 
with  that  foresight  which  to  some  people  seems  like 
prophecy,  and  to  others  seems  like  genius,  had  years 
before  realized  what  nobody  else  realized  in  our  navy, 
or  in  any  other  navy,  that  naval  officers  as  they  grew 


CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA  107 

older  needed  instruction  in  strategy,  in  addition  to  the 
instruction  which  their  duties  gave  them  in  gunnery, 
navigation,  ordnance,  seamanship,  international  law,  elec 
tricity,  etc.,  and  had  conceived  the  idea  of  establishing 
a  naval  war  college.  Despite  covert  sneers  and  loud 
guffaws,  Luce  succeeded  in  getting  a  few  officers  to  see 
the  light  that  he  saw,  and  to  consent  to  identifying  them 
selves  with  the  project;  and  finally  he  even  persuaded 
the  department  and  Congress  to  establish  a  college,  util 
izing  the  old  poor-house  on  Coaster's  Harbor  Island  for 
the  college  building.  In  this  very  modest  structure  a 
few  Luce  devotees  then  read  books  and  wrote  papers 
and  delivered  lectures.  At  the  head  of  these  officers  was 
Commander  Alfred  T.  Mahan. 

A  depressed-looking  man  he  was  in  those  days.  I  shall 
never  forget  a  conversation  I  had  with  him  and  Mrs. 
Mahan  at  the  war  college  one  afternoon.  While  Mahan 
did  not  say  that  he  had  made  a  mistake,  it  was  perfectly 
apparent  that  he  was  intensely  discouraged.  He  made 
excuses  for  himself  and  the  war  college,  but  seemed  to 
have  no  great  hope  connected  with  it.  That  a  man  of 
his  rank  and  standing  should  have  made  excuses  for  him 
self  to  an  obscure  young  man  of  my  age  and  rank  showed 
how  he  regarded  his  position  then. 

Luce  ordered  the  officers  of  the  fleet  to  go  to  certain 
lectures  delivered  by  Mahan  and  others.  We  obeyed,  of 
course,  but  with  very  bad  grace.  We  did  not  see,  even 
the  captains  of  ships,  who  ought  to  have  seen,  did  not  see, 
what  the  campaigns  of  the  Archduke  Charles  had  to  do 
with  the  profession  of  the  naval  officer.  Luce,  Mahan, 
and  the  others  at  the  war  college  tried  to  make  us  see  that 
the  art  of  war,  like  any  other  art,  is  an  art  that  is  prac 
tised  by  men,  according  to  the  principles  of  the  art ;  and 
that  in  the  military  and  naval  art  the  guns  and  other 
weapons  used  are  tools,  just  as  a  hammer  and  a  chisel 
are  tools  in  the  hands  of  a  sculptor  or  a  brush  in  the 
hands  of  a  painter.  We,  like  most  other  people,  were 
down  so  close  to  the  ground  that  we  saw  only  the  things 


108     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

immediately  around  us ;  while  Luce  and  Mahan  were  far 
enough  above  the  ground  to  see  other  things  besides,  and 
to  see  the  relations  of  those  other  things  to  the  things 
immediately  around  them.  Nearly  all  the  seed  fell  on 
stony  ground ;  but  the  fact  that  the  war  college  continued 
to  maintain  an  existence,  although  a  miserable  one,  for 
many  years,  until  it  finally  became  established,  shows 
that  occasionally  a  seed  fell  on  fertile  ground. 

But  Luce  gave  us  other  work  than  listening  to  lectures. 
He  kept  us  going  all  the  time ;  some  one  dubbed  him  the 
1  i  great  North  American  drill  sergeant. ' '  He  kept  us  con 
tinually  steaming  out  to  sea  to  hold  tactical  evolutions, 
then  going  into  port  to  have  night  exercises,  sham  at 
tacks,  landing  parties,  marches,  etc.  Luce  could  never  be 
quiet  himself  or  let  anybody  else  be  quiet.  We  admired 
him  intensely  because  we  realized  his  extraordinary  in 
telligence,  his  professional  knowledge  and  skill,  and  his 
force  of  character.  And  he  was  a  delightful  companion, 
too,  unassuming  in  his  manner  and  full  of  funny  stories 
and  witty  talk. 

One  day  in  Newport  another  lieutenant  and  I  were 
walking  slowly  and  gravely,  and  we  encountered  Luce 
walking  much  more  briskly  than  we,  wearing  a  pink 
flower  in  his  buttonhole  and  swinging  a  little  cane.  As 
we  passed  him  we  saluted,  of  course,  and  we  heard  him 
singing  to  himself. 

'Waters,"  I  said,  "what  do  you  suppose  keeps  him  in 
good  spirits  all  the  time. ' ' 

"That's  easy,"  answered  Waters;  "he  doesn't 
smoke." 

That  winter  Luce  took  the  North  Atlantic  Fleet  to 
Pensacola,  and  told  us  we  had  to  go  ashore  for  a  week 
and  pretend  to  be  an  army.  All  the  boats  of  the  ships 
were  towed  to  the  shore  by  steam  launches,  taking  away 
from  every  ship  all  the  officers  and  men  except  just 
enough  to  take  care  of  them.  About  an  hour  before  we 
were  to  start  it  began  to  rain  in  torrents.  Some  of  us 
said,  "Well,  we  don't  like  rain  ordinarily,  but  this  will 


Photo,  Brown  Bros 


REAR-ADMIRAL  A.   T.    MAHAN 


CRUISING  IN  THE  ATLANTA  109 

prevent  our  going  ashore  this  afternoon."  We  didn't 
know  our  commander-in-chief.  We  went  ashore  at  the 
time  appointed,  and  spent  all  the  afternoon  and  evening 
in  the  rain,  getting  up  our  tents  and  putting  our  camp 
in  order.  Most  of  the  officers  and  men  had  to  lie  on  the 
ground  under  their  tents,  but  Midshipman  Jenkins  and 
I  were  able  to  get  a  few  boards  to  lie  upon.  Jenkins  was 
the  first  lieutenant  of  the  company  of  which  I  was  cap 
tain.  We  were  all  drenched  to  the  skin,  and  everything 
we  had  was  wet,  and  I  expected  to  see  a  few  hundred 
pneumonia  and  rheumatism  cases  in  the  morning.  But 
there  were  no  pneumonia  or  rheumatism  cases  in  the 
morning.  The  fact  that  the  ground  was  sandy  and  ab 
sorbed  the  water  quickly,  helped  us,  of  course. 

After  we  went  north  that  spring  (1888)  Luce  gave  a  lec 
ture  before  the  United  States  Naval  Institute  in  which 
he  pointed  out  the  impossibility  of  ever  getting  an  effi 
cient  navy  with  the  system  of  naval  administration  then 
existing.  Under  that  system  the  Navy  Department  was 
divided  into  separate  bureaus,  each  with  its  special  task 
to  do;  but  there  was  no  one  to  direct  their  activities 
strategically,  in  preparing  for  war  or  waging  war,  except 
the  secretary  of  the  navy,  who  was  always  a  civilian  and 
untrained  in  strategy. 

This  lecture  marked  Luce 's  downfall,  materially  speak 
ing.  Up  to  that  moment  Luce  had  been  the  only  flag- 
officer  since  the  Civil  War  who  had  been  able  to  get  a 
large  fleet  together  and  drill  it  in  naval  tactics  or  who 
seemed  to  care  to  do  so.  At  this  time  he  had  designed  a 
number  of  exercises  for  the  coming  summer,  in  which 
his  fleet  would  operate  in  simulated  war  operations  along 
the  approaches  to  New  York  and  Newport ;  but  after  his 
lecture  his  ships  were  taken  away  from  him  one  by  one. 
Not  very  long  after  he  was  detached  from  the  command 
of  the  fleet. 

While  in  St.  Thomas  one  evening  thinking  about  the 
problem  of  range-finding,  and  realizing  that  the  problem 
was  to  find  the  sum  of  two  angles  included  between  two 


110    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

observers  and  lines  drawn  from  those  two  observers  to 
a  target,  it  occurred  to  me  that  the  summation  might  be 
made  by  adding  the  resistances  of  two  portions  of  wire  in 
an  electric  circuit.  This  idea  seemed  so  good  that  I  at 
tacked  it  at  once,  and  was  soon  able  to  devise  an  appa 
ratus  on  the  principle  of  the  "Wheatstone  Bridge," 
which  seemed  to  solve  the  problem  perfectly.  On  get 
ting  to  New  York  I  showed  it  to  Lieutenant  Zalinski  of 
the  army,  then  working  on  the  so-called  Zalinski  Pneu 
matic  Dynamite  Gun,  saying  I  thought  that  it  might  help 
him  solve  his  problem  of  adapting  the  Vesuvius  to  her 
work.  Zalinski  was  delighted  with  my  scheme,  and  I 
soon  constructed  a  crude  apparatus  to  test  it.  I  set  this 
apparatus  up  on  the  southern  shore  of  Staten  Island; 
and  the  Pneumatic  Dynamite  Gun  Company  had  an  ex 
pert  test  it  by  measurements  of  actual  distances  both 
day  and  night.  The  experiments  were  so  successful  that 
they  asked  me  to  construct  an  apparatus  for  the  Vesuvius 
at  their  expense. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE    VESUVIUS,    MY   RANGE-FINDER   AND   GUN-DIRECTOR 

I  WAS  detached  from  the  Atlanta  on  October  1,  1888, 
and  ordered  as  member  of  a  board  that  was  estab 
lished  to  conduct  the  ' '  acceptance  trials ' '  of  the  Vesuvius, 
the  so-called  "dynamite  cruiser." 

I  was  glad  to  live  on  shore  again,  where  I  did  not  have 
to  stand  night  watches;  but  one  of  the  first  things  that 
happened  was  that  all  the  members  of  my  little  family 
were  taken  ill.  My  baby  daughter  was  taken  ill  with 
diphtheria,  her  nurse  with  spinal  meningitis,  my  wife 
with  nervous  prostration,  and  I  with  rheumatism.  We 
all  recovered  except  the  nurse. 

The  Vesuvius  was  a  vessel  especially  constructed  by 
the  Cramp  Company  for  the  Pneumatic  Dynamite  Gun 
Company  to  carry  three  pneumatic  guns.  These  guns 
were  fifteen  inches  in  diameter,  and  designed  to  fire  pro 
jectiles  that  could  carry  five  hundred  pounds  of  dynamite 
each,  or  some  other  high  explosive.  The  three  guns 
were  secured  in  the  bow  of  the  Vesuvius,  pointing  di 
rectly  forward,  at  a  fixed  angle  of  elevation  of  eighteen 
degrees.  The  propelling  force  behind  the  projectile  was 
compressed  air  instead  of  powder,  and  it  was  stored 
in  reservoirs  below  deck,  and  admitted  to  one  gun  or  an 
other  by  opening  a  valve.  The  range,  or  distance,  to 
which  the  projectile  was  to  be  throwr  was  regulated  by 
the  time  which  the  valve  was  allowed  to  stay  open.  Ex 
tremely  ingenious  arrangements  had  been  devised,  some 
by  Lieutenant  Zalinski,  but  most  of  them  by  a  Russian 
named  Rapieff,  to  regulate  the  time  to  a  thousandth  of  a 
second. 

Rapieff  was  a  highly  educated  and  ingenious  man  and 

in 


112     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  inventor  of  an  electric  light,  somewhat  used  in  Eu 
rope,  and  known  by  the  name  of  the  Rapieff  light.  He 
was  an  excellent  electrician ;  but  I  remember  his  partici 
pating  in  a  discussion  one  afternoon  with  some  impor 
tant  New  York  men,  during  which  he  said  substantially : 
''The  electricity  is  very  good  for  the  delicacy.  It  is 
beautiful  for  all  the  things  in  which  great  refinement  is 
required,  for  the  telegraph,  the  telephone,  the  electric 
light,  the  instrument  of  precision ;  but  for  the  power,  no. 
If  you  want  the  power,  you  must  have  steam  or  com 
pressed  air  or  water.  The  electricity  is  no  good  for  the 
power." 

The  Vesuvius  was  a  highly  interesting  craft.  She  was 
entirely  different  in  her  design  and  intentions  from  any 
other  naval  vessel.  The  guns  of  all  naval  ships  had 
been  directed  at  the  side  of  an  enemy  ship,  with  the  in 
tention  of  piercing  the  side  with  a  projectile;  but  the 
guns  of  the  Vesuvius  were  to  be  directed  at  the  deck  of 
the  enemy  ship  or  at  the  water  near  her.  For  firing  at 
the  side  of  a  ship,  it  was  desirable,  and  is  still  desirable, 
for  the  guns  to  have  a  "flat  trajectory";  that  is,  for 
the  projectiles  to  go  from  the  guns  to  the  enemy  ship 
by  a  line  as  straight  as  possible.  But  the  Vesuvius' s 
guns  had  a  high  trajectory,  and  were  intended  to  fall 
down  on  the  target.  Zalinski,  being  an  artillery  offi 
cer,  understood  the  principle  that,  for  attacking  a  hori 
zontal  target,  as  mortar-fire  does,  it  is  correct  for  the 
projectile  to  have  a  high  trajectory  for  the  same  reason 
that  in  the  game  of  tennis,  if  a  player  wants  his  ball  to 
fall  in  a  certain  spot,  and  has  no  other  end  in  view,  he 
knocks  his  ball  gently  up  in  the  air.  A  good  deal  of 
criticism  by  naval  officers,  however,  was  directed  at 
the  high  trajectory  of  the  Vesuvius' s  guns,  which  they 
said  was  contrary  to  principles  of  gunnery.  They  did 
not  realize  that  the  target  was  a  horizontal  one,  and  not 
the  vertical  one  to  which  they  were  accustomed. 

There  were  three  sizes  of  projectiles :  one  size  was  the 
full  calibre  projectile,  which  would  carry  five  hundred 


THE  VESUVIUS  113 

pounds  of  high  explosive;  one  sub-caliber  size  would 
carry  two  hundred  pounds ;  and  another  sub-caliber  size 
would  carry  fifty  pounds.  The  two  sub-caliber  sizes 
fitted  into  the  guns  just  as  the  full-sized  projectiles  did; 
but  they  were  made  to  fit  by  what  may  be  called  ' '  filling 
pieces,"  which  fell  off  as  soon  as  a  projectile  left  the 
muzzle.  These  sub-caliber  projectiles  would,  of  course, 
go  farther  than  a  heavy  projectile,  but  do  less  damage 
on  hitting.  The  intention  was  to  fire  so  that  there  would 
be  about  an  even  chance  of  hitting  the  ship  or  of  falling 
about  fifty  or  one  hundred  feet  short  of  it;  and  it  was 
thought  that  it  would  be  found  more  desirable  to  fall 
about  fifty  feet  short  of  a  ship  than  to  hit  the  ship,  the 
idea  being  that  the  projectile  would  continue  its  course 
under  water,  strike  the  target  ship  below  the  water-line, 
and  act  like  a  torpedo. 

The  Vesuvius  was  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  long  and 
twenty-six  and  a  half  feet  wide;  she  drew  nine  feet  of 
water,  and  had  a  displacement  of  725  tons.  She  was 
made  of  low  steel,  was  to  make  a  speed  of  twenty-two 
knots,  and  to  cost  the  Government  three  hundred  thou 
sand  dollars. 

The  first  trial  of  the  Vesuvius  was  for  speed,  and  was 
held  by  a  board  consisting  of  Lieutenants  Cowles, 
Schroeder,  and  Fiske.  We  held  two  trials  that  were 
unsuccessful,  much  to  the  bewilderment  of  the  con 
tractors.  On  the  second  of  these  trials,  and  as  we  were 
on  our  way  back  to  Philadelphia,  the  members  of  the 
board,  two  representatives  of  the  contracting  firm,  and 
Mr.  Horace  See,  were  discussing  the  matter.  Some  one 
said: 

"Now,  I  don't  pretend  to  be  a  very  scientific  man, 
but  it  does  seem  to  me  that  we  have  not  given  the 
Vesuvius  a  fair  show,  because  we  have  been  testing  her 
in  water  that  is  too  shallow.  We  have  been  trying  her 
in  Delaware  Bay,  and  I  think  we  ought  to  take  her  out 
to  sea  next  time,  where  the  water  is  deeper.  You  see, 
the  ship  drags  a  great  deal  of  water  along  with  her, 


114    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

and  if  the  bottom  of  the  ship  is  near  the  bottom  of 
the  bay,  this  water  is  dragged  along  the  bottom  of  the 
bay,  and  causes  a  great  deal  of  friction;  whereas,  if 
there  was  deep  water  there,  this  friction  would  not 

exist. ' ' 

Immediately  we  all  realized  that  we  had  been  acting 
like  donkeys,  because  we  all  knew  just  what  this  man 
had  said,  but  had  not  thought  to  apply  our  knowledge  to 
the  case  in  point. 

So  the  next  time  we  went  out  to  sea,  and  held  the  trial 
along  a  course  just  outside  the  capes  of  Delaware  Bay. 
The  result  was  a  complete  success,  a  mean  speed  of  21.646 
knots  being  attained,  which  was  1.6  knots  in  excess  of 
the  contract.  This  achievement  was  hailed  with  joy  not 
only  by  the  contractors  and  the  believers  in  the  Vesuvius, 
but  by  the  people  all  over  the  United  States,  because  it 
surpassed  all  records  of  speed  made  up  to  that  time  by 
vessels  of  that  class.  One  sentence  in  The  New  York 
Times  read,  "It  is  almost  incredible  to  conceive  of  4200 
horse-power  being  developed  in  a  vessel  of  800  tons." 
The  trial  was  held  on  January  11,  1889. 

Preparations  were  now  started  for  testing  the  accur 
acy  of  the  gun.  To  eliminate  all  sources  of  accidental 
error,  a  gun  was  installed  at  Fort  Lafayette,  pointing 
south  down  New  York  Bay,  and  three  horizontal  targets 
were  established.  One  target  was  a  mile  away,  another 
a  thousand  yards,  and  the  other  five  hundred  yards. 
Buoys  at  these  spots  were  supposed  to  represent  the 
centers  of  rectangles  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  long 
and  fifty  feet  wide.  By  the  terms  of  the  contract  the 
projectiles  were  to  fall  inside  these  rectangles.  I  was 
a  junior  member  of  the  board,  and  my  first  task  was  to 
supervise  the  loading  of  the  so-called  dynamite-shells 
with  nitro-gelatin.  The  gelatin  masses,  as  packed  in 
the  shells,  looked  like  cheeses. 

After  a  few  practice  shots,  the  final  test  of  the  gun 
was  held  on  January  26.  Eight  shots  were  fired,  and  five 
hit  the  target. 


THE  VESUVIUS  115 

My  station  was  on  the  shore  abreast  of  the  target, 
where  I  stood  with  a  theodolite  to  measure  the  distance 
by  which  each  projectile  went  over  or  short  of  the  target. 
I  can  remember  now  the  thrill  I  felt  whenever  I  heard  a 
loud  cough  from  Fort  Lafayette  a  mile  away,  then  saw  a 
tremendous  fifteen-inch  projectile  coming  directly  at  me, 
then  saw  it  strike  the  water  and  run  under  water  about 
fifty  feet,  and  then  explode  and  throw  up  a  tremendous 
geyser  of  water  hundreds  of  feet  into  the  air.  Zalinski 
had  arranged  a  very  ingenious  electric  fuse  in  the  for 
ward  head  of  the  shell,  which  was  set  into  operation  by 
the  fact  of  entering  the  water,  and  which  caused  the 
automatic  explosion  of  the  shell,  after  the  shell  had 
gone  about  fifty  feet  under  water;  thus  imparting  a 
torpedo  character  to  the  shell. 

The  speed  of  the  Vesuvius  and  the  accuracy  of  the 
gun  having  been  proved,  the  next  step  was  to  see  if  the 
guns  could  be  fired  as  frequently  as  the  contract  pro 
vided  for.  By  the  contract  each  gun  had  to  be  capable 
of  firing  as  often  as  once  in  a  minute  and  a  half.  The 
work  of  getting  the  Vesuvius  and  her  three  guns  ready 
for  this  test  took  nearly  nine  months,  and  the  final  offi 
cial  test  did  not  take  place  until  October  9.  The  board 
at  that  time  consisted  of  Commander  Goodrich,  Lieuten 
ant  Schroeder,  and  Lieutenant  Fiske,  all  of  whom  have 
now  passed  to  the  quiet  shades  of  the  retired  list  as  rear- 
admirals.  The  trial  was  held  off  Pettys'  Island,  near 
Philadelphia,  and  was  a  complete  success ;  the  three  guns 
firing  five  shells  each,  fifteen  in  all,  in  seventeen  minutes. 
Each  shell  was  a  dummy,  but  of  the  size  and  weight  of 
the  shell  that  could  carry  two  hundred  pounds  of  ex 
plosives,  and  all  went  beyond  the  mile  limit  which  was 
prescribed.  The  compressed  air  was  in  reservoirs,  and 
charged  to  a  pressure  of  two  thousand  pounds  to  a 
square  inch.  The  nicety  of  the  valve  adjustment  re 
quired  may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that,  in  order  to 
make  the  longest  throw,  the  valve  had  to  open  and  close 
in  one  twenty-fifth  of  a  second,  while  for  the  shortest 


116    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

throw  it  had  to  open  and  close  in  one  two-hundredths  of 
a  second. 

While  on  the  Vesuvius  board  it  occurred  to  me  that  it 
might  be  possible  to  make  an  automatic  machine-gun 
that  would  operate  by  compressed  air  instead  of  by 
powder,  and  that  the  power  for  actuating  the  mechan 
ism  could  be  secured  by  cutting  a  hole  in  the  rear  end 
of  the  barrel  and  using  the  force  of  the  air  that  escaped. 
I  found  it  easy  to  invent  a  mechanism  for  carrying  my 
idea  into  effect,  and  then  I  saw  that  the  plan  might  be 
used  with  other  kinds  of  gases  than  air;  gunpowder, 
for  instance.  So  I  made  application  for  three  patents, 
one  patent  covering  the  basic  idea  of  using  gas  conducted 
from  a  hole  in  the  rear  end  of  the  barrel,  one  covering 
the  application  of  the  scheme  to  pneumatic  guns,  and 
the  other  covering  its  application  to  powder  guns. 
These  applications  were  all  granted  finally  by  the  Patent 
Office,  and  then  I  did  one  of  the  many  foolish  things  that 
I  have  done  in  my  life :  I  abandoned  three  perfectly  good 
basic  patents  rather  than  pay  the  three  "final  fees," 
aggregating  sixty  dollars.  Years  afterward,  the  "Colt 
automatic  gun"  appeared,  invented  and  patented  by 
Browning,  wrhich  was  based  on  the  exact  scheme  for  which 
I  had  been  granted  the  three  abandoned  patents,  and  now 
this  has  been  developed  and  improved  into  the  celebrated 
"Browning  Gun." 

The  Vesuvius  was  accepted,  but  she  never  found  favor 
with  naval  officers  except  with  a  small  minority.  She 
was  put  into  commission  under  the  command  of  Lieu 
tenant  Schroeder,  but  I  think  for  only  one  cruise.  She 
was  used  off  Santiago  in  the  Spanish  War  under  the 
command  of  Lieutenant-Commander  Pillsbury,  but  did 
not  accomplish  much  in  a  practical  way.  I  have  always 
been  of  the  opinion  that,  despite  the  defects  of  the 
Vesuvius  and  of  the  gun  itself,  the  system  had  great 
possibilities,  and  that  it  is  unfortunate  that  they  were  not 
developed.  But  the  Pneumatic  Dynamite  Gun  Company 
failed,  and  there  was  no  man  or  body  of  men  behind  the 


AMMUNITION-HOIST  117 

enterprise  after  that  to  contribute  the  necessary  motive 
power  to  overcome  the  difficulties.  Motive  power  is  al 
ways  needed  to  overcome  difficulties. 

During  my  cruise  in  the  Atlanta  I  had  invented  an  ap 
paratus  whereby  the  motions  of  an  electric  motor  could 
be  made  to  follow  the  motions  of  an  operator's  hand  in 
both  speed  and  direction.  I  got  a  patent  on  this,  and  I 
also  got  patents  on  three  applications  of  it;  one  for 
hoisting  ammunition,  one  for  training  guns,  and  one  for 
steering  ships.  I  assigned  these  patents  to  the  Sprague 
Electric  Motor  Company,  and  sometime  before  I  left  the 
Atlanta,  the  Sprague  Company  began  to  manufacture 
an  electric  ammunition-hoist.  The  underlying  idea  of 
this  was  that  the  operator,  by  turning  a  small  crank, 
would  cause  the  electric  motor  to  hoist  the  ammunition; 
and  that  if  the  operator  stopped  moving  his  hand  for 
any  reason,  such  as  being  wounded  or  suddenly  startled, 
the  motor  would  stop.  This  device  attracted  consider 
able  attention,  as  it  was  the  first  attempt  to  apply  elec 
tricity  to  ordnance  used  on  board  ship.  The  ammuni 
tion-hoist,  when  completed,  was  installed  on  board  the 
Atlanta.  It  was  successful,  and  remained  in  operation 
for  about  three  years,  when  it  was  supplanted  by  an  im 
proved  device. 

One  afternoon  after  I  had  left  the  Atlanta  I  went  over 
to  the  navy-yard  to  see  the  ammunition-hoist  work.  The 
Atlanta  was  then  at  the  cobdock.  In  going  through  the 
yard,  I  met  an  assistant  engineer,  whom  I  will  call  Price. 
He  and  I  walked  through  the  yard  together,  went  on 
board  the  Atlanta,  and  descended  into  the  wardroom, 
where  we  sat  a  few  minutes  at  the  table  talking.  He 
seemed  to  be  in  fairly  good  spirits,  but  he  said  he  had 
been  mortified  by  a  letter  from  the  department  which 
intimated,  he  thought,  that  he  had  been  trying  to  shirk 
his  duty.  I  remembered  afterward  that  he  carried  a 
small  package  in  his  hand  which  looked  as  if  he  had 
just  made  a  purchase.  I  went  forward  on  the  gun- 
deck,  and  spent  a  few  minutes  watching  the  operation 


118     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

of  my  ammunition-hoist,  when  I  noticed  evidences  of 
some  commotion  on  the  gun-deck.  I  went  aft,  and  saw 
that  the  sailors  had  hung  a  light  kind  of  screen,  and 
had  made  a  small  temporary  room  there.  Looking  be 
hind  the  screen,  I  saw  Price  lying  on  the  deck  dead,  his 
head  covered  with  blood.  He  had  gone  to  his  room 
and  shot  himself  almost  immediately  after  leaving  me 
at  the  wardroom-table.  On  his  bureau  were  the  car 
tridges,  and  in  his  hand  was  the  revolver,  which  he  had 
bought  in  Brooklyn,  and  which  he  was  carrying  in  the 
package  I  had  noticed  in  his  hand  while  he  and  I  were 
walking  through  the  navy-yard  in  pleasant  talk  together. 

Shortly  after  making  my  electric  ammunition-hoist, 
the  Sprague  Company  installed  my  electric  training  sys 
tem  in  the  U.  S.  S.  Chicago,  attaching  it  to  the  eight-inch 
gun-carriage  on  the  starboard  side  of  the  quarter-deck. 
As  this  was  the  first  attempt  to  train  guns  by  electricity, 
it  attracted  a  great  deal  of  attention.  It  was  a  success 
almost  from  the  start,  but  it  was  determined  later  not  to 
use  any  artificial  source  of  power  except  for  larger 
guns.  I  took  up  that  problem  a  few  years  afterward. 

It  is  my  impression  that  I  was  the  first  one  to  demon 
strate  the  practicability  of  using  electricity  to  hoist  am 
munition  and  train  guns.  The  subject  was  taken  up  in 
all  the  navies  afterward,  and  I  think  I  am  not  wrong  in 
saying  that  all  the  navies  use  electricity  now  for  those 
purposes.  I  was  never  able,  however,  to  adopt  my  sys 
tem  to  the  steering  of  ships.  When  the  practical  details 
were  worked  out,  the  complexity  that  resulted  was  found 
to  be  so  great  as  to  be  prohibitory.  I  saw  no  way  of 
avoiding  it  except  by  leaving  out  that  feature  which  com 
pelled  the  steering-engine  to  follow  the  motions  of  the 
wheel  on  deck  as  it  was  moved  by  the  quartermaster.  I 
often  suggested  that  such  a  following  was  not  neces 
sary;  that  it  was,  in  fact,  a  ''relic  of  the  Dark  Ages." 
I  never  could  get  anybody  to  agree  with  me.  During 
the  last  few  years,  however,  officers  have  come  to  see  the 
uselessness  of  this  factor.  In  fact,  an  electric  steer- 


ELECTRIC  RANGE-FINDER  119 

ing-gear,  in  which  the  quartermaster  simply  moves  a  lit 
tle  controller,  like  that  which  a  motorman  uses,  has  been 
introduced  into  the  service. 

My  electric  range-finder  never  worked  well  in  the 
Vesuvius,  and  for  many  reasons,  one  being  that  it  was 
the  first  apparatus  of  this  kind  ever  made,  and  therefore 
faulty  in  details ;  the  second  reason  being  that  the  base 
line  was  only  twenty-six  feet  long.  But  before  this  ap 
paratus  was  completed,  the  American  Range  Finder 
Company  was  incorporated  in  New  York  to  develop  my 
inventions,  and  this  company  secured  a  contract  from 
the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  to  install  one  of  my  range-finders 
in  the  Chicago.  The  navy  was  in  a  very  curious  state 
of  mind  just  then.  All  the  officers  were  impressed  with 
the  idea  that  the  navy  had  fallen  into  a  deplorable  state, 
and  that  everything  possible  must  be  done  to  get  it  out. 
Almost  any  suggestion  was  welcome,  and  nothing  wrong 
was  seen  by  anybody  in  my  entering  into  business  rela 
tions  with  the  American  Range  Finder  Company,  which 
was  to  sell  apparatus  to  the  Government.  My  arrange 
ment  with  the  company  was  that  they  were  to  take  out 
patents  on  my  apparatus  in  foreign  countries,  and  that 
I  was  to  receive  one  fifth  of  the  profits  of  the  company. 
There  never  were  any  profits.  All  the  patents  we  ap 
plied  for  were  ultimately  obtained  except  one,  and  that 
was  for  the  first  and  only  patent  I  ever  applied  for  in 
Turkey.  The  answer  to  the  first  application  was  that 
the  Turkish  Government  would  not  grant  the  patent. 
Shortly  afterward  the  company  received  a  letter,  ap 
parently  from  the  grandmaster  of  artillery,  saying  that 
if  the  company  would  give  him  eight  hundred  dollars, 
the  patent  would  be  granted.  The  company  paid  no  at 
tention  to  the  letter. 

My  range-finder  was  installed  in  the  Chicago  in  the 
autumn  of  1899.  It  was  beautifully  made,  but  I  could 
not,  for  a  long  while,  get  it  adjusted  in  the  ship.  The 
first  essential  was  that  the  two  telescopes,  one  in  the 
bow  and  one  in  the  stern,  separated  by  about  three  hun- 


120     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

dred  feet,  should  be  capable  of  being  placed  parallel  to 
each  other,  in  order  that  the  amount  of  their  convergence 
on  a  target  might  have  some  point  to  start  from.  I  went 
to  the  Chicago  night  after  night,  with  two  assistants,  and 
pointed  the  telescopes  at  the  stars,  and  watched  the  posi 
tions  of  the  telescopes  at  that  instant.  The  telescopes 
then,  of  course,  were  parallel.  In  order  to  be  sure  that 
I  had  made  no  mistake,  I  would  go  to  the  ship  the  fol 
lowing  night,  and  point  the  telescopes  at  the  same  stars, 
only  to  find  that  the  marks  I  had  made  on  the  telescope 
supports  the  night  before  were  all  wrong.  The  time  was 
approaching  when  the  Chicago  was  to  go  to  Newport, 
and  I  was  almost  desperate,  because  I  seemed  to  be  face 
to  face  with  failure.  I  began  to  fear  that  something 
was  wrong  in  principle  with  the  instrument.  Finally  the 
ship  went  to  Newport. 

I  followed  her  in  a  blind  effort  to  find  out  what  was 
the  matter,  but  seeing  no  light  whatever.  The  same  pro 
cedure  continued  in  Newport.  One  night  when  Lieuten 
ant  Knight  was  officer  of  the  deck,  he  said  to  me : 

"Jim,  what  are  you  trying  to  do?  You  come  down 
here  every  night  and  look  up  at  the  sky  with  telescopes 
in  an  aimless  way,  and  you  come  back  the  next  night  and 
do  exactly  the  same  thing." 

I  explained  my  difficulty  to  Knight  and  said : 

"Now  perhaps  your  experience  at  the  gunnery  sta 
tion  at  Annapolis  will  enable  you  to  see  what  the  trouble 
is.  I  don't." 

"Why,  that  is  easy,"  said  Knight.  "The  next  time 
that  you  want  me  to  get  you  out  of  trouble  ask  me  to  do 
something  hard.  The  trouble  is  that  those  little  plat 
forms  under  your  two  telescopes  are  not  parallel  to  each 
other;  and  besides  that,  the  star  is  not  always  at  the 
same  height  in  the  sky. ' ' 

"Knight,"  I  said,  "if  we  can  go  to  some  part  of  the 
deck  where  it  is  dark,  you  can  kick  me  until  you  get 
tired.  I  deserve  it." 

The  officers  of  the  Chicago  had  a  great  deal  of  good- 


ELECTRIC  EANGE-FINDEE  121 

humored  fun  about  my  range-finder.  None  of  them  took 
it  seriously,  mainly  because  they  thought  there  was  no 
use  for  any  range-finder.  Furthermore,  at  this  time, 
while  the  officers  realized  the  necessity  of  more  elaborate 
apparatus  than  they  had  had  in  the  old  navy,  they  were 
very  much  opposed,  and  very  properly,  to  the  introduc 
tion  of  any  apparatus  not  absolutely  essential.  One  day 
while  in  Newport  I  was  defending  the  general  proposi 
tion  of  range-finding,  while  several  other  officers  were 
supporting  the  proposition  that  an  officer  could  learn 
to  estimate  distances  with  his  eye  with  sufficient  accuracy 
for  practical  purposes.  Finally  Lieutenant  Sears  said: 

''Jim,  you  have  made  a  very  scientific  argument  to 
prove  that  a  man  cannot  estimate  distances  with  suffi 
cient  correctness.  Now  I  Ve  had  a  good  deal  of  ex 
perience  in  that  line,  and  I  believe  I  can.  For  instance, 
I  believe  I  could  go  on  deck  right  now  and  prove  it. 
I  don't  want  to  bet,  because  I  may  not  be  able  to;  but 
I  think  I  can,  nevertheless." 

So  a  lot  of  us  went  on  deck,  and  I  asked  Sears  the 
distances  of  several  objects  which  we  could  see.  Sears 
estimated  these  distances,  and  one  of  the  officers  wrote 
down  what  he  said  on  a  piece  of  paper.  Then  we  went 
into  the  chart-house,  and  I  measured  on  the  chart  the 
distances  of  those  objects.  To  my  amazement  he  had 
estimated  them  sufficiently  correctly  for  practical  pur 
poses.  Twenty  years  afterward,  when  I  was  captain  of 
the  Tennessee,  and  Sears,  then  a  captain,  was  naval  at 
tache  at  Tokio,  Japan,  I  had  a  talk  with  him  there.  Sears 
then  told  me  that  the  "estimates"  he  made  that  after 
noon  were  the  result  of  a  little  conspiracy,  and  that  all 
those  distances  had  been  carefully  measured  on  the  chart 
beforehand  and  memorized.  Sears  said  the  performance 
had  been  intended  as  a  joke,  but  that  I  had  taken  it  so 
seriously,  they  had  all  agreed  to  say  nothing  about  it. 

From  Newport  the  Chicago  went  back  to  the  navy- 
yard  in  Brooklyn,  and  I  reported  the  range-finder  ready 
for  test.  An  official  test  was  held  (I  think  in  November, 


122     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

1889)  by  a  naval  board  of  which  Lieutenant-Commander 
Couden  was  the  head,  and  the  range-finder  fulfilled  satis 
factorily  the  requirements  for  acceptance  that  had  been 
prescribed. 

Certain  faults  in  the  Chicago's  range-finder,  however, 
were  so  obvious  that  I  invented  another  range-finder,  on 
the  same  principle,  but  of  a  more  practical  design.  A 
contract  was  made  by  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  and  two 
range-finders  of  this  design  were  installed  in  the  U.  S.  S. 
Baltimore,  then  fitting  out  at  the  navy-yard,  Norfolk, 
one  range-finder  being  mounted  on  the  bridge  for  meas 
uring  distances  ahead  and  astern,  the  other  range- 
finder  mounted  on  the  fore-and-aft  line  of  the  ship,  with 
one  instrument  in  the  bow,  and  the  other  near  the  stern, 
for  measuring  distances  on  either  side.  These  range- 
finders  were  tested  by  a  board  of  which  Commander 
Batcheler  was  the  head,  and  accepted. 

At  this  time  Commodore  W-  -  was  commandant  of 
the  navy-yard,  and  his  brother-in-law  came  to  visit  him. 
Commodore  M—  -  had  been  the  previous  commandant. 
One  afternoon  the  brother-in-law  walked  about  the  navy- 
yard,  and  fortune  took  him  on  board  one  of  the  ships 
then  being  repaired.  An  old-time  calker  was  sitting  on 
his  funny  little  stool  on  the  quarter-deck,  poking  oakum 
into  a  seam  with  a  sort  of  a  chisel  with  his  left  hand, 
and  hammering  the  oakum  down  into  the  seam  with  his 
right  hand.  In  those  days  calkers  were  not  famed  for 
amiability.  Not  knowing  this,  the  brother-in-law  tried 
to  get  into  conversation  with  the  calker,  but  with  no 
success.  Finally  the  brother-in-law  conceived  the  idea 
that  it  might  be  well  to  tell  him  of  his  relationship  to 
the  commandant.  Then  the  following  brief  conversa 
tion  ensued: 

'  *  Commodore  W is  my  brother-in-law. ' ' 

"Do  you  know  Commodore  M ?" 

"No." 

"Well,  he  's  another-  -." 

The  Baltimore's  range-finder  seemed  to  be  pretty  good, 


ELECTRIC  RANGE-FINDER  123 

but  it  was  not  " direct  reading";  that  is,  the  operator  had 
to  move  a  pointer  along  some  resistance  wires  until  the 
needle  of  a  volt-meter  came  to  zero,  and  then  read  what 
the  pointer  indicated.  So  I  devised  a  direct-reading  in 
strument  in  which  the  volt-meter  needle  itself  would 
point  directly  to  the  range-mark.  The  principal  diffi 
culty  I  found  was  in  introducing  a  correction  to  take  care 
of  cases  where  the  target  was  not  perpendicular  to  the 
base-line,  but  several  degrees  away  from  it.  I  was  so 
fortunate  as  to  be  able  to  conceive  of  a  plan  whereby 
the  correction  was  automatically  made,  and  without  in 
troducing  any  additional  apparatus  whatever,  by  simply 
proportioning  the  resistances  in  the  circuit  according  to 
a  mathematical  formula  which  I  discovered.  I  had  an 
apparatus  constructed,  and  it  worked  exceedingly  well 
when  the  target  was  not  more  than  forty-five  degrees 
away  from  perpendicularity  to  the  base-line. 

This  apparatus  was  put  into  the  Baltimore  by  arrange 
ment  with  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  the  old  apparatus  be 
ing  taken  out  and  junked.  I  did  not  attempt  on  this  oc 
casion  to  put  a  range-finder  on  the  bridge  of  the  Balti 
more,  because  it  had  become  obvious  that  the  base-line 
was  too  small. 

This  range-finder  was  a  remarkable  success.  Not  only 
was  it  better  than  any  other  range-finder  that  had  ever 
been  produced,  but  it  was  really  able  to  measure  dis 
tances  with  sufficient  accuracy  for  the  short  ranges  then 
used.  In  those  days  it  was  not  considered  worth  while 
to  fire  at  ranges  greater  than  three  thousand  yards,  be 
cause,  with  the  sights  then  used  on  navy  guns,  the  errors 
of  sighting  were  so  great  that  shooting  at  a  greater  range 
than  three  thousand  yards  would  be  a  waste  of  ammuni 
tion.  This  was  so  clearly  recognized  that  the  specifica 
tions  for  my  range-finder  did  not  require  it  to  measure 
greater  distances.  In  fact  in  October,  1890,  two  thou 
sand  yards  was  considered  to  be  about  the  limit  of  range 
for  accuracy. 

The  range-finder  was  ready  when  the  Baltimore  went 


124    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

out  to  sea  for  the  official  tests  in  firing  the  guns  in  the 
spring  of  1890.  The  Baltimore  fired  guns  on  both  sides, 
steaming  around  a  target,  and  the  range-finder  stood 
the  test.  According  to  the  contract  made  for  this  in 
strument,  however,  it  was  not  to  be  accepted  until  after 
a  year's  trial  in  the  ship  in  actual  service  at  sea  had 
demonstrated  its  practicability,  and  the  fact  had  been 
established  to  the  satisfaction  of  a  board  of  officers. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1890  the  Baltimore  went  to  Eu 
rope  with  the  remains  of  John  Ericsson,  and  she  re 
mained  in  European  waters  for  nearly  a  year.  Some 
time  in  June,  1891,  The  New  York  Times  published  the 
following  paragraph: 

A  naval  officer  writing  from  Europe  says  that  while  the  Balti 
more  was  at  Toulon,  nothing  on  board  the  ship  excited  so  much 
favorable  comment  from  foreigners  as  the  Fiske  range-finders. 
Just  now,  says  the  writer,  "when  our  growing  navy  is  accused 
everywhere  of  being  simply  a  copy  of  foreign  navies,  it  is  worth 
while  to  be  able  to  point  out  something  in  which  foreign  navies 
admittedly  copy  us." 

The  Baltimore  had  recently  held  target  practice  in 
which  she  engaged  a  floating  target  at  distances  which 
were  unknown  except  in  so  far  as  the  range-finder  indi 
cated  them.  I  am  quite  sure  that  this  was  the  first  time 
that  a  range-finder  was  ever  successfully  used  in  naval 
gunnery. 

During  the  trials  of  the  Baltimore  before  she  left 
the  United  States  the  most  important  idea  I  had  ever 
had  flashed  into  my  mind.  Firing  had  finished  with  the 
port  battery  and  begun  with  the  starboard,  when  a  large 
fleet  of  schooners  got  in  the  way,  and  practice  had  to  be 
stopped  for  a  while.  I  amused  myself  by  looking  at  the 
schooners  through  the  telescope  of  the  forward  instru 
ment,  and  noticing  how  definitely  the  cross  hairs  of  the 
telescope  moved  across  their  sails  with  the  gentle  rolling 
and  pitching  of  the  Baltimore.  I  had  watched  this  in 
an  idle  way  for  a  few  minutes  when  the  thought  came 


GUN-DIRECTOK 


125 


that  anybody  could  fire  all  the  guns  in  the  broadside  from 
that  place,  and  hit  the  target  every  time,  by  setting  the 
telescope  at  the  angle  of  depression  equal  to  the  proper 
angle  of  elevation  of  the  guns,  leaving  the  guns  parallel 
to  the  deck,  and  firing  when  the  roll  of  the  ship  brought 
the  cross  hairs  on  the  target. 

In  a  few  minutes,  however,  cold,  pitiless  reason  pointed 
out  the  practical  impossibility  of  mounting  the  guns  so 
that  the  angle  of  elevation  of  all  would  be  the  same. 

Nevertheless,  I  decided  to  patent  the  scheme,  reason 
ing  that,  as  the  years  went 
by,  ships  would  be  con 
structed  of  increasing  size 
and  with  increasing  per 
fection  of  workmanship.  Fig.  i 
On  May  15,  1890,  I  ap 
plied  for  a  patent  on  "A 
Method  of  Pointing  Guns 
at  Sea."  The  Patent  Of 
fice  made  numerous  objec 
tions,  but  finally  granted 
a  patent  on  September  9,  Flg>  2 
1890.  The  patent  was  of 
course  illustrated  and  de 
scribed  in  the  Patent  Of 
fice  Gazette  which  was 
published  monthly  and 
sent  to  all  the  civilized 
countries  in  the  world, 
and  to  the  ordnance  offices 
of  the  armies  and  navies 
of  those  countries. 

The  application  was  illustrated  with  the  accompanying 
diagrams,  and  ended  with  the  following  paragraph : 

1 1 1  claim— 

"The  method  of  pointing  a  gun  located  on  a  rolling, 
heeling  or  vibrating  platform,  which  consists  in  ad 
justing  a  telescope,  also  located  on  said  platform,  and 


Method  of  Pointing  Guns  at  Sea. 

U.  S.  Patent  No.  435,925,  dated 

September  9,  1890. 


126     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

movable  on  a  transverse  axis  approximately  parallel  to 
that  of  the  gun  at  an  angle  to  the  axis  of  the  bore  of  the 
gun  equal  to  a  certain  predetermined  angle  of  elevation 
necessary  to  cause  the  projectile  fired  from  said  gun  to 
travel  to  a  given  target,  and,  second,  noting  the  moment 
when  the  line  of  sight  of  said  adjusted  telescope  is 
caused  by  the  movement  of  said  supporting  platform  to 
intersect  said  target. ' ' 

The  claim  was  granted  by  the  Patent  Office,  and 
formed  part  of  the  Letters  Patent,  when  finally  issued. 
It  underlies  the  whole  practice  of  modern  naval  gunnery, 
and  it  distinctly  describes  the  Director  System  recently 
adopted  and  usually  credited  to  Admiral  Sir  Percy 
Scott,  R.N.,  by  which  the  instant  for  firing  all  the  guns 
in  a  ship's  broadside  is  determined  by  the  intersection 
with  the  target  of  the  cross  hairs  of  a  telescope,  placed 
in  a  convenient  position. 

I  did  not  think  the  scheme  would  become  practicable 
for  some  years  to  come,  for  the  reason  that  it  depended 
for  its  successful  use  on  such  an  exact  parallelism  of  the 
platforms  on  which  the  guns  turned,  that  if  the  guns 
were  given  any  angle  of  elevation  with  reference  to  those 
platforms,  they  would  all  be  at  that  angle  of  elevation 
above  the  horizontal.  The  British  and  Germans  did  this 
many  years  later,  and  achieved  such  successful  results 
at  target  practice,  that  the  system  was  taken  up  recently 
by  our  navy  and  others,  and  may  now  be  considered  as 
definitely  adopted. 

My  main  idea  in  taking  out  the  patent  was  to  com 
bine  it  with  some  other  patents  that  I  already  had 
on  " range  and  position  finders."  By  the  method  and 
apparatus  described  in  those  patents  the  distance 
and  direction  of  a  distant  object  could  be  ascertained, 
and  all  the  guns  of  a  fort,  by  means  of  electrical  arrange 
ments  on  their  elevating-gear  and  training-gear,  could 
be  concentrated  on  it  from  central  protected  station ;  and 
I  thought  that  it  might  become  possible  in  the  future  to 
put  similar  electrical  gear  on  the  guns  of  a  ship,  and  by 


GUN-DIRECTOR  127 

combining  this  system  with  a  range-finder  having  two 
armored  observing  stations,  to  direct  and  fire  all  the  guns 
correctly  from  the  conning-tower. 

Realizing  the  impossibility  of  using  the  system  suc 
cessfully  for  firing  all  the  guns  together,  I  endeavored  to 
adapt  it  to  individual  guns.  I  sketched  many  schemes  on 
paper  for  mounting  a  telescope  on  a  ship 's  gun,  much  as 
one  is  mounted  on  a  musket,  but  arranged  so  that,  when 
the  gun  recoiled,  the  sight  itself  would  not  come  back  with 
the  gun  and  strike  the  gun  captain  in  the  eye,  but  would 
stay  away  from  it ;  that  is,  the  gun  would  slide  under  the 
sight.  The  favorite  plan  was  some  electrical  mechan 
ism,  which,  when  the  gun  captain  pressed  the  firing-but 
ton,  would  cause  the  telescope  to  slide  forward.  Some 
of  the  plans  were  not  very  bad,  but  they  all  seemed  too 
dangerous,  because  the  mechanism  might  fail.  In  those 
days,  it  must  be  remembered,  we  did  not  have  any  guns 
that  recoiled  in  the  line  of  fire  except  small  guns. 

One  evening  the  idea  came  sharply: 

"You  needn't  put  the  telescope  on  the  gun;  just  put 
it  on  something  that  moves  with  the  gun,  but  does  not 
recoil." 

A  simple  mechanism  for  carrying  the  idea  into  effect 
was  quickly  devised,  and  on  March  9,  18$1,  I  applied  for 
a  patent  on  "A  Telescopic  Sight  for  Ships'  Guns." 

The  Patent  Office,  after  fighting  a  year  and  a  half, 
finally  yielded  arid  granted  a  patent,  which  was  issued 
on  September  5,  1893. 

After  filing  the  application,  I  constructed  an  instru 
ment.  The  telescope  was  like  those  used  on  the  Vesuvius 
range-finder.  It  was  two  feet  long;  the  object-glass  was 
two  inches  in  diameter;  the  field  of  view  was  eight  de 
grees  ;  the  magnification  was  four. 

It  was  constructed  by  the  late  W.  E.  Stackpole,  who 
had  been  making  high-grade  telescopes  for  surveying 
and  astronomical  use  nearly  all  his  life.  I  have  never 
seen  a  better  telescope  than  the  one  he  made  for  the 
first  naval  telescope  sight  in  1891.  The  field  was  flat,  the 


128     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

definition  excellent,  and  the  cross  wires  as  fine  as  was 
compatible  with  strength  and  clear  visibility.  They  were 
secured  very  firmly  in  the  exact  focal  plane  of  the  object- 
glass,  and  there  was  no  discoverable  parallax.  The  wires 
formed  a  single  cross. 

That  the  telescope  was  rugged  is  proved  by  the  fact 
that  it  remained  in  excellent  condition,  without  any  re 
pairs  whatever,  for  several  years,  two  and  a  half  of 
which  were  spent  in  the  Yorktown,  and  one  and  a  half 
in  the  San  Francisco.  That  it  was  pretty  nearly  what 
a  telescope  for  a  telescope  sight  ought  to  be  is  shown  by 
the  strong  resemblance  between  it  and  the  telescopes  is 
sued  in  sights  during  the  last  few  years. 

Shortly  after  making  this  sight,  I  wrote  to  Commander 
Folger,  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  asking  his  per 
mission  to  show  it  to  him.  He  replied  in  the  affirmative, 
specifying  a  certain  hour  in  the  afternoon  a  few  days 
later.  I  sent  him  the  sight  and  followed  it  the  next 
day. 

I  appeared  at  the  bureau  at  the  designated  time,  and 
saw  the  instrument  on  his  desk. 

Our  interview  did  not  last  half  an  hour.  At  first  Com 
mander  Folger  was  opposed  to  my  idea ;  but  as  soon  as  I 
had  explained  it  fully,  he  reversed  his  attitude  completely, 
and  declared  that  I  had  made  a  very  great  invention. 

"You  have  changed  naval  gunnery  from  a  game  of 
chance  into  a  science,"  he  said. 

When  I  was  taking  my  leave,  he  said  that  he  thought 
the  best  way  in  which  to  get  an  intelligent  trial  of  the 
sight  was  to  send  it  to  the  Yorktown,  because  Commander 
Chadwick  was  the  captain. 

It  has  been  my  misfortune  during  all  of  my  profes 
sional  life  to  have  been  almost  constantly  under  the  sus 
picion  of  being  unsafe  and  of  unsound  judgment,  not  be 
cause  I  have  ever  had  any  accidents  of  any  kind,  but  be 
cause  I  have  continually  urged  projects  which  to  most 
people  seemed  unpractical.  I  have  been  navigator,  ex 
ecutive  officer,  captain,  and  flag-officer  under  virtually  all 


RIDICULE  FOR  INVENTIONS  129 

the  conditions  of  both  peace  and  war,  and  have  never, 
so  far  as  I  can  remember  now,  made  a  grave  profes 
sional  mistake  or  been  seriously  accused  of  any  neg 
lect  of  duty.  Yet  I  have  always  been  called  visionary 
and  unpractical,  because  of  the  things  I  have  pro 
posed,  though  every  single  thing  except  one  that  I  have 
seriously  proposed  was  ultimately  adopted  after  pro 
tracted  trials.  That  one  was  my  four-arm  semaphore  for 
signaling  between  ships.  It  was  applied  to  several  ships, 
and  it  received  favorable  reports,  and  the  only  thing  that 
prevented  its  adoption  was  the  invention  of  the  wireless 
telegraph,  which  made  it  unnecessary.  Every  one  of  my 
inventions  brought  me  mostly  ridicule,  but  none  of  them 
so  much  as  the  naval  telescope  sight.  I  was  frequently 
told  by  officers  that  an  officer  who  really  understood  his 
profession  could  not  have  seriously  considered  such  a 
ridiculous  idea,  and  much  less  could  he  have  submitted  it 
for  trial. 

During  the  time  that  I  was  at  the  Electrical  Exposi 
tion  in  1884  I  had  been  on  a  committee  charged  with 
reporting  on  the  possible  uses  of  electricity  in  war.  As 
time  went  on,  I  had  become  more  and  more  impressed 
with  the  possibilities  of  electricity  for  war  purposes, 
and  so  I  was  glad  to  accept  an  invitation  from  the 
Franklin  Institute  of  Pennsylvania  to  deliver  a  lecture 
in  Philadelphia  on  " Electricity  in  Warfare"  in  the  early 
part  of  1886.  My  lecture  was  treated  with  good-natured 
tolerance.  Four  years  later  I  delivered  a  lecture  with 
the  same  title  on  the  evening  of  January  1,  1890,  and 
this  lecture  was  treated  with  the  utmost  consideration. 
In  fact,  I  was  amazed  at  the  publicity  which  it  received 
not  only  from  the  papers  in  Philadelphia,  but  from  all 
the  large  newspapers  in  the  country,  and  not  only  in 
their  news  columns,  but  in  editorials  as  well.  The  lec 
tures  were  nearly  the  same,  but  four  years  of  education 
had  elapsed. 

In  May,  1890, 1  had  an  article  in  The  Forum  on  "The 
Naval  Battle  of  the  Future."  I  have  just  re-read  the 


130     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

article,  and  I  cannot  but  feel  surprised  at  the  good 
guesses  which  that  article  contained.  It  was  devoted 
for  the  most  part  to  indicating  the  increasing  uses  of 
scientific  apparatus  of  all  kinds,  and  the  inevitable  re 
placement  of  the  rough-and-ready  methods  of  "seamen" 
by  methods  and  instruments  of  precision,  and  to  point 
ing  out  the  advantages  which  would  accrue  to  that  navy 
which  should  be  the  most  far-sighted  and  energetic  in 
adopting  and  adapting  them. 

I  am  sorry  that  it  was  not  our  navy,  but  the  German, 
that  followed  the  course  suggested  in  my  article. 

On  October  23,  1890,  I  gave  a  lecture  under  the  aus 
pices  of  the  New  York  Electrical  Society,  but  in  the 
Columbia  School  of  Mines.  The  lecture  was  called  "The 
Modern  Electrician  in  Time  of  War."  One  paragraph 
stated  that  in  time  of  war: 

"The  Navy  Department  would  be  even  more  hurried. 
We  should  certainly  be  called  upon  to  commission  a  great 
many  warships,  and  to  equip  destroyers  and  a  great 
many  merchant  steamships.  We  should  have  to  do  the 
things  that  we  did  on  the  outbreak  of  our  last  war;  and 
in  addition  we  should  be  confronted  with  the  necessity 
of  fitting  all  kinds  of  fine  apparatus,  the  necessity  of 
fitting  electrical  appliances  of  all  descriptions,  besides 
securing  gun  circles  in  place  with  mathematical  precision, 
and  of  accomplishing  the  manifold  fine  work  that  is  re 
quired  with  the  ordnance,  navigation  and  engineering 
equipment  of  a  warship  of  the  present  day." 

To  meet  the  difficulties  I  said,  "I  propose  the  forma 
tion  of  a  corps  of  naval  and  military  electricians,  to  as 
sist  the  army  and  navy  in  their  work." 

This  lecture  excited  a  great  deal  of  attention,  and  was 
commented  on  favorably  in  editorials  in  the  principal 
papers.  Nothing  was  done,  however,  to  carry  out  the 
suggestion  practically  until  about  eight  years  later,  dur 
ing  our  Spanish  War,  when  a  corps  such  as  I  proposed, 
but  including  mechanical  engineers,  was  formed  by  Cap 
tain  Eugene  Griffin,  vice-president  of  the  General  Elec- 


FIRST  TELEPHONES  IN  SHIPS  131 

trie    Company,   who   was    a   graduate    of   West   Point. 

About  the  same  time  that  I  applied  for  a  patent  on 
my  first  range-finder  I  applied  for  a  patent  on  a  ' '  range- 
and-position-finder"  which  was  applicable  to  forts  rather 
than  to  ships,  and  which  measured  and  indicated  not  only 
the  distance  of  an  enemy  ship,  but  also  its  direction. 
It  may  not  be  clear  why  apparatus  should  be  needed  to 
indicate  the  direction  of  a  ship ;  it  may  seem  that  it  would 
only  be  necessary  to  look  at  the  ship  and  note  in  what  di 
rection  it  lay.  So  it  is  necessary  to  state  that  the  ap 
paratus  was  intended  to  give  the  information  to  men 
handling  guns  behind  fortifications,  in  positions  such 
that  they  could  not  see  the  enemy  ship,  and  the 
enemy  ship  could  not  see  them.  Such  a  range-and-posi- 
tion-finder  was  finally  constructed  and  installed  at  Fort 
Hamilton,  New  York. 

The  second  range-finder  which  I  put  into  the  Baltimore 
was  equipped  with  telephones,  secured  to  the  telescopes 
and  the  reading  instruments  so  that  conversations  could 
be  carried  on  between  the  observers  and  the  man  who 
read  the  range  indications  on  the  volt-meter.  This  was 
the  first  installation  of  the  telephone  ever  made  on  board 
any  ship. 

A  few  months  later,  when  I  was  inspector  of  electric 
lighting  at  Cramps'  shipyard,  I  asked  Mr.  Hayes,  the 
chief  engineer  of  the  Bell  Telephone  Company,  if  some 
thing  could  not  be  done  to  introduce  the  telephone  on 
board  ship.  Mr.  Hayes  became  interested,  and  he  and 
I  devised  two  sets  of  apparatus.  One  set  comprised  a 
circuit  going  from  the  executive  officer's  office  to  the 
master-at-arms'  desk,  and  represented  the  easiest  con 
ditions  of  telephone  service  on  board  ship;  the  other 
circuit  ran  from  the  bridge  to  the  engine-room,  and  rep 
resented  the  most  difficult  conditions.  Mr.  Hayes  se 
cured  the  permission  of  his  company,  and  I  secured  the 
permission  of  the  Navy  Department,  to  have  these  ap 
paratus  put  into  the  Philadelphia  for  trial  in  service. 
The  report  made  later  about  the  circuit  from  the  execu- 


132     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

tive  officer's  office  to  the  master-at-arms  was  favorable, 
but  the  report  about  the  other  apparatus  was  that  it  was 
not  practical  for  ship  use.  Investigation  developed  the 
fact  that  the  only  trouble  with  this  circuit  was  that  two 
wires  about  two  feet  long  rubbed  against  each  other, 
and  scraped  off  the  insulation  between  them.  Of  course 
this  was  easily  rectified. 

This  was  the  second  installation  of  the  telephone  ever 
made  on  board  any  ship. 


CHAPTER  X 

LONDON,    PAEIS,    AND    THE    FORMIDABLE 

IN  October,  1890,  I  applied  for  six  months'  leave,  with 
permission  to  go  to  Europe,  and  my  request  was 
granted.  I  was  going  as  a  representative  of  the  Ameri 
can  Range  Finder  Company,  which  had  secured  patents 
on  different  forms  of  my  range-finder,  position-finder, 
gun-director,  telescope-sight,  and  range-indicator  in  the 
principal  foreign  countries.  My  wife  and  daughter  and 
I  sailed  in  the  early  part  of  November,  and  landed  in 
England,  from  which  we  went  afterward  to  France.  Be 
fore  the  end  of  my  six  months'  leave  I  applied  for  six 
months'  extension  of  leave,  and  my  request  was  granted. 
I  spent  my  time  in  Europe  in  demonstrating  my  range- 
finder  to  the  British,  French,  and  Italian  navies.  It  is 
difficult  for  me  to  realize  now  how  I  could  have  done  such 
a  thing,  or  how  it  could  have  been  permitted,  unless  I 
realize  at  the  same  time  the  state  of  public  opinion  then 
even  in  the  navy.  At  that  time  there  was  absolute  con 
viction  in  the  minds  of  everybody  that  the  United  States 
would  never  go  to  war  again,  and  that  our  navy  was 
maintained  simply  as  a  measure  of  precaution  against 
the  wholly  improbable  danger  of  our  coast  being  at 
tacked.  It  was  not  considered  proper  for  a  country  as 
great  as  ours  not  to  have  a  fine  navy;  but  the  people 
regarded  the  navy  very  much  as  they  regarded  a  beauti 
ful  building  or  fine  natural  scenery,  a  thing  to  be  ad 
mired  and  to  be  proud  of,  but  not  to  be  used.  I  did 
not  make  the  slightest  secret  of  my  intentions.  In  fact, 
I  was  careful  to  proclaim  them  as  publicly  as  I  could, 
and  during  all  the  time  I  was  in  Europe  I  got  all  the  pub 
licity  I  could  in  the  papers  for  the  trials  which  my  in- 

133 


134     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

struments  received.  I  was  careful  to  tell  the  authori 
ties  in  Great  Britain,  France,  and  Italy  that,  although 
that  procedure  was  not  common  in  Europe,  I  had  to 
insist  upon  it  for  my  own  protection  in  the  future.  The 
officers  of  our  navy  who  talked  to  me  about  the  matter 
expressed  themselves  as  believing  that  my  inventions  re 
dounded  greatly  to  the  credit  of  the  navy,  because  they 
were  the  only  things  which  saved  the  United  States  Navy 
from  the  accusation  of  being  in  every  way  a  copy  of 
foreign  navies. 

My  wife  and  little  daughter  and  I  crossed  the  Atlantic 
in  the  City  of  New  York,  an  enormous  vessel,  we  thought, 
which,  with  her  sister,  the  City  of  Paris,  was  con 
sidered  the  finest  vessel  afloat.  After  a  narrow  escape 
from  ramming  the  coast  of  Ireland  in  a  dense  fog,  we 
arrived  at  Liverpool  early  one  morning,  and  promptly 
took  the  train  for  London.  By  an  arrangement  which 
I  had  made  in  New  York,  a  representative  of  some  bag 
gage  company  greeted  me  on  board  at  Liverpool,  and 
received  the  keys  of  our  trunks  and  undertook  to  get  them 
past  the  custom-house  authorities  in  Liverpool.  We  ar 
rived  at  the  Langham  Hotel  that  evening,  and  our  trunks 
joined  us  a  few  hours  later. 

We  stayed  in  London  about  a  month,  that  is,  till 
Christmas  day.  I  had  never  been  in  London  before,  and 
I  looked  forward  to  seeing  London  with  a  good  deal  of 
awe.  I  was  not  so  awestruck  when  I  saw  London  as  I 
had  expected  to  be.  Everything  looked  dirty  and  smoky. 
The  streets  seemed  narrow  and  crooked,  the  houses  old- 
fashioned,  the  hotels  crude,  and  the  business  methods 
far  behind  those  of  New  York.  The  telephone  system 
was  so  inefficient  that  telephones  were  rarely  used,  there 
was  no  such  thing  as  messenger  service,  and  type-writers 
were  rarely  to  be  seen. 

I  had  a  letter  of  introduction  to  Mr.  W.  0.  Smith,  head 
of  the  firm  of  Elliot  Brothers,  the  great  manufacturers 
of  electric  and  scientific  instruments,  and  he  undertook 
charge  of  my  range-finder  experiments  and  demonstra- 


LONDON,  PARIS,  AND  THE  FORMIDABLE     135 

tions  in  England,  at  the  expense  of  the  American  Range 
Finder  Company  in  New  York.  I  was  then  just  thirty-six 
years  old,  and  Mr.  Smith  was  a  little  younger.  I  found 
him  a  very  interesting  man,  with  a  delightful  combination 
of  good  nature,  good  looks,  scientific  knowledge,  progres- 
siveness,  and  business  ability.  He  had  one  or  two  type 
writers  in  his  offices,  a  number  which  did  not  seem  very 
great  for  a  large  establishment  that  made  scientific  in 
struments.  Mr.  Smith  told  me  that  he  used  the  type 
writer  considerably  for  routine  business  correspondence, 
but  that  when  he  had  a  long  and  important  letter  to 
write,  which  had  to  be  very  carefully  expressed,  he  al 
ways  wrote  it  with  his  own  hand. 

As  Mr.  Smith  was  an  exceedingly  busy  man,  and  I  was 
enjoying  a  brief  period  as  a  gentleman  of  leisure,  I  some 
times  had  to  wait  in  Mr.  Smith's  outer  office.  There  was 
a  bookkeeper  there,  and  I  noticed  him  day  after  day 
copying  figures  in  big  books,  and  drawing  red  lines  with 
a  pen,  along  a  cylindrical  ruler.  The  monotonousness  of 
that  man's  life,  with  its  interminable  copying  of  figures 
day  after  day,  and  drawing  of  red  lines,  aroused  my 
pity,  so  gray  and  tame  and  devoid  of  any  possible  inter 
est  did  it  seem.  I  said  to  him  one  day: 

"Bookkeeping  requires  a  great  deal  of  care,  doesn't 
it?"  I  seemed  to  have  touched  a  spring;  for  the  bent 
figure  straightened  up,  an  earnest  look  shot  into  the  eyes, 
and  he  said  to  me,  with  a  grave  intensity: 

"Oh,  yes,  sir;  it  requires  the  greatest  possible  care. 
You  have  no  idea  how  much  care  and  brain  work  it  re 
quires,  and  how  much  responsibility  it  is.  But  I  don't 
mind  that,  because  it  is  so  wonderfully  interesting." 

Mr.  Smith  installed  my  range-finder  on  the  roof  of  his 
building,  and  one  day  the  ordnance  board  came  to  exam 
ine  it.  I  think  there  were  twelve  members  of  the  board, 
with  Lieutenant  General  Hay  at  the  head.  At  one  stage 
of  the  proceedings  I  was  addressed  by  Colonel  Watkin, 
the  inventor  of  the  famous  Watkin  Position-Finder,  with 
a  remark  something  like  this : 


136     FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

"I  see,  Lieutenant  Fiske,  that  your  range-finder  works 
very  well  for  getting  distances  perpendicular  to  the  base 
line,  and  I  can  see  that,  even  if  the  target  is  eight  de 
grees  away  from  perpendicularity  to  the  base-line,  an 
error  of  only  one  per  cent,  would  be  introduced,  because 
the  cosine  of  eight  degrees  is  only  one  per  cent,  less  than 
the  cosine  of  zero  degrees.  I  suppose  you  do  not  at 
tempt  to  get  ranges  unless  the  target  is  within  eight 
degrees  of  perpendicularity  to  the  base-line." 

Then  I  explained  to  him  and  to  the  other  members 
of  the  board  how  the  instrument  automatically  showed 
distances  even  when  the  target  was  as  much  as  forty-five 
degrees  away  from  perpendicularity  from  the  base-line, 
and  I  proved  that  it  did  so  by  practical  demonstrations. 

I  did  not  get  a  copy  of  the  board's  report  for  some 
months.  When  I  did  receive  it,  I  saw  that  it  contained  a 
statement  to  the  effect  that  the  use  of  the  range-finder 
was  restricted  to  the  measurements  of  distances  of  ob 
jects  the  direction  of  which  was  perpendicular  to  the 
base-line. 

One  evening  my  wife  and  I  went  out  to  dine  at  the 
house  of  Mr.  Edwin  Abbey,  the  artist.  A  dense  fog 
mixed  with  coal-dust  overhung  London,  so  that  we  saw 
no  definite  object  from  the  time  we  left  our  hotel  till  we 
reached  Mr.  Abbey's  house,  or  from  the  time  we  left  his 
house  later  until  we  reached  our  hotel.  We  rode  on  top 
of  an  omnibus,  which  we  were  advised  to  do  as  a  meas 
ure  of  safety,  and  I  have  a  confused  memory  of  bumping 
into  other  omnibuses,  seeing  a  faint  glow  of  light  now 
and  again  from  some  omnibus-lamp  near  at  hand,  and 
of  hearing  a  great  deal  of  profanity  from  omnibus-driv 
ers.  The  next  day,  when  walking  on  the  sidewalk,  I 
could  not  see  my  own  feet.  I  was  told  that  fogs  of  this 
kind  in  London  were  called  ''pea  soup,"  because  of  their 
color,  due  to  the  mixture  of  fog  and  smoke. 

One  afternoon  I  met  Poultney  Bigelow  in  London, 
and  a  conversation  resulted  substantially  as  follows : 

"I  have  just  been  to  a  splendid  lecture  on  tactics  at 


137 

the  United  Service  Club.  How  many  British  Officers 
do  you  think  were  there?" 

"Oh,  I  don't  know;  about  twenty-five." 

"Well,  there  were  just  six  British  officers  present.  If 
a  lecture  like  that  had  been  given  in  Berlin,  every  officer 
in  Berlin  would  have  been  present  by  order.  If  the  Brit 
ish  Army  ever  comes  up  against  the  German  Army,  the 
German  Army  will  stand  them  on  their  heads." 

We  started  for  Paris  on  Christmas  morning,  1890, 
and  reached  Paris  that  evening  in  time  for  dinner.  A 
cold  trip  it  was.  My  little  family,  with  the  addition  of 
a  pretty  red-headed  nurse-maid  named  Lili  Grosclaude, 
had  a  compartment  to  ourselves,  which  was  warmed  a 
little,  and  only  a  little,  by  warm-water  cans.  We  kept 
warm  as  best  we  could  by  dancing  jigs  together. 

How  different  Paris  was  from  London!  That  such 
a  great  difference  could  exist  between  cities  so  close  to 
gether  seemed  surprising  at  first  thought;  but  on  sec 
ond  thought  one  realized  that  what  makes  cities  and 
persons  alike  is  not  so  much  propinquity  as  heredity. 

One  of  the  first  things  I  noticed  in  Paris  the  next  day 
was  the  word  " engelures"  in  the  drug-store  windows. 
On  inquiry,  I  ascertained  that  this  was  the  French  word 
for  chilblains.  As  I  had  hardly  heard  of  chilblains  since 
I  used  to  play  snow-ball,  I  was  surprised  that  the  word 
should  be  accorded  such  publicity.  In  a  few  days  I 
found  out  why. 

One  day  while  we  were  seated  at  dejeuner  in  the  de 
lightful  Hotel  Lafond  a  magnificent  creature  rode  up 
to  the  door  on  a  magnificent  horse,  attired  in  a  magnifi 
cent  uniform,  and  delivered  an  envelop  nearly  a  foot 
square.  He  delivered  the  envelop  to  some  one  at  the 
door  and  then  rode  away,  his  metal  accoutrements  gleam 
ing' in  the  sun,  and  his  sword  clanking  an  accompani 
ment  to  the  beat  of  the  hoofs  of  his  charger  upon  the  pave 
ment.  Then  this  envelop  was  brought  into  the  salle-a- 
manger,  where  we  sat,  and  delivered  with  much  dignity 
to  me.  I  had  never  felt  so  grand  before,  and  I  have 


138     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

seldom  felt  so  grand  since.  The  letter  inside  the  en 
velop  was  signed  by  the  minister  of  marine,  and  told  me 
that  orders  had  been  given  to  the  commander-in-chief  of 
the  Mediterranean  Fleet  to  test  my  range-finder  on  board 
the  flag-ship  the  Formidable,  then  at  Toulon.  Toulon 
was,  and  still  is,  the  principal  French  naval  station  on  the 
Mediterranean. 

The  American  Range  Finder  Company  had  made  an 
arrangement  with  the  Compagnie  des  Forges  et  Chan- 
tiers  like  the  arrangement  it  had  made  with  Elliot  Broth 
ers  in  London.  The  great  ordnance  inventor  and  engi 
neer  Canet  was  the  head  man  of  this  company  in  Paris, 
and  through  him  I  made  the  necessary  arrangements  for 
sending  my  apparatus  to  Toulon  and  for  the  experiments 
to  be  made  there.  M.  Canet  I  found,  of  course,  to  be  a 
very  interesting  man.  He  spoke  English  perfectly  and 
was  a  man  of  real,  not  sham,  ability.  In  some  way  which 
I  cannot  explain,  however,  he  did  not  inspire  confidence, 
and  I  found  afterward  that  many  people  did  not  have 
confidence  in  him. 

A  pleasant,  but  exceedingly  expensive,  trip,  made 
mostly  by  night,  took  me  from  Paris  to  Toulon,  and  I 
never  shall  forget  the  first  view  I  had  of  the  blue  Medi 
terranean  when  the  train  reached  the  top  of  the  low  moun 
tains  that  skirt  its  northern  shore. 

I  arrived  in  Toulon  in  the  latter  part  of  the  forenoon 
of  some  day  in  January,  1891.  I  was  driven  in  a  funny 
little  hack  to  the  Grand  Hotel,  and  given  a  comfortable 
room,  with  a  red-tiled  floor  and  white-washed  walls,  from 
the  windows  of  which  I  could  see  some  beautiful  and 
rugged  mountains  only  a  few  miles  away.  A  delightful 
dejeuner  was  served  about  noon,  the  guests  congregating 
on  both  sides  of  long  tables  in  table-d'hote  fashion;  and, 
as  I  was  somewhat  tired  and  warm,  I  was  glad  to  see 
decanters  of  red  wine  and  white  wine  placed  at  frequent 
intervals  along  the  tables.  I  found  afterward  that  for 
dejeuner  and  dinner  white  wine  and  red  wine  were  served 


139 

without  extra  charge,  while  an  extra  charge  was  made  for 
coffee. 

I  was  surprised  at  the  length  of  time  the  people  spent 
at  this  dejeuner,  or  lunch ;  but  I  reminded  myself  that  I 
was  in  the  south  of  France,  in  sunny  Provence,  and  that  I 
had  never  heard  that  people  work  very  hard  in  Provence. 
I  learned  afterward,  however,  that  workmen  and  clerks 
started  to  work  at  seven  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and 
worked  until  noon;  and  that,  though  they  took  a  recess 
from  noon  until  two  o'clock,  they  began  to  work  again 
at  two  o'clock  and  worked  from  then  till  seven. 

I  remained  in  Toulon  and  in  its  neighborhood  for  six 
months  or  more,  and  I  have  never  enjoyed  life  more  thor 
oughly.  The  climate  was  delightful,  though  sometimes 
it  was  a  little  hot  in  the  middle  of  the  day;  and  I  liked 
the  people  tremendously.  The  two  whom  I  remember 
the  best  were  a  Commander  Simpson  of  the  Chilean  Navy, 
now  a  vice-admiral,  and  a  M.  Savattier,  a  man  somewhat 
younger  than  I,  who  had  charge  of  all  the  electrical  work 
in  that  great  ship  and  engine  building  company  known 
in  French  by  the  name  of  Compagnie  des  Forges  et  Chan- 
tiers.  I  got  to  know  Simpson  very  well,  and  I  found  him 
a  highly  accomplished  and  agreeable  man.  One  ridicu 
lous  feature  of  our  acquaintance  was  that  we  always  talked 
in  French  together,  though  we  both  spoke  English  better 
than  we  spoke  French.  Frequently,  one  of  us  would 
realize  this  and  begin  to  talk  in  English;  but  we  would 
soon  drift  back  again  into  French.  This  was  a  curious 
fact  that  I  cannot  explain  except  on  the  general  principle 
of  the  ''influence  of  environment." 

The  morning  after  my  arrival  I  took  my  early  break 
fast  in  the  open  air  in  the  grounds  of  the  hotel,  and  then 
went  to  the  water-front,  where  I  embarked  in  a  small 
steamer  that  plied  back  and  forth  across  the  Bay  of 
Toulon.  A  trip  of  about  half  an  hour  brought  us  to 
the  town  of  La  Seyne,  where  the  ship-building  works 
were  situated,  and  are  still  situated. 


140     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

I  found  M.  Savattier  in  his  office,  and  I  was  received 
with  that  flattering  and  courteous  cordiality  which  is  so 
charming  an  attribute  of  the  French  gentleman.  I  was 
taken  by  him  and  presented  to  the  great  man  (the  truly 
great  man)  M.  Legane,  who  was  the  presiding  genius  at 
the  works,  and  one  of  the  first  naval  constructors  of 
France.  I  left  the  office  of  M.  Legane  feeling  as  though 
I  owned  the  entire  ship-building  plant.  About  five  years 
after  this  I  received  a  letter  from  Savattier  telling  me 
of  his  marriage  with  the  daughter  of  his  chief.  I  have 
heard  recently  that  Legane  is  dead  and  that  Savattier 
took  his  place. 

I  remember  few  men  with  so  much  pleasure  and  re 
spect  as  Savattier.  He  was  one  of  the  most  intense 
workers  I  have  ever  met,  and  he  had  as  clear  a  head  and 
as  good  a  disposition  and  as  clean  a  character  as  any 
merely  human  being  could  have.  During  the  months  in 
which  we  were  together  in  the  difficult  relative  positions 
of  the  inventor  and  the  engineer  who  had  to  make  the 
inventor's  inventions  work,  we  did  not  always  agree; 
but  Savattier 's  sincerity  was  so  profound,  and  his  rea 
sons  for  his  actions  were  so  good,  and  set  forth  with 
such  courteous  clearness,  that  in  the  end  I  usually  fol 
lowed  where  he  led. 

We  set  up  my  instruments  in  one  of  the  rooms  of  the 
company,  and  Savattier  and  I  with  some  workmen  soon 
got  them  to  working  well.  The  fact  which  stands  out 
most  clearly  in  my  memory  about  this  stage  of  the  work 
is  that  the  chilblains  which  I  had  contracted  in  Paris  at 
tacked  me  with  extreme  ferocity  when  I  suddenly  changed 
to  the  warm  climate  of  Toulon  and  that  Savattier  had  a 
workman  bring  in  buckets  of  cold  water  at  intervals  for 
me  to  hold  my  feet  in. 

When  we  had  got  the  instruments  adjusted  again,  the 
company  installed  the  instruments  on  the  upper  deck  of 
the  Formidable.  I  looked  with  amazement  and  almost 
with  incredulity  at  this  ship  and  at  the  other  ships  near 
by,  the  Marceau,  the  Amiral  Duperre,  the  Hoche,  and 


LONDON,  PARIS,  AND  THE  FORMIDABLE     141 

others.  As  I  was  only  an  American  officer,  I  was  ac 
corded  privileges  that  would  not  have  been  accorded  to  a 
European  officer,  and  was  permitted  to  see  things  such 
as  would  have  been  kept  close  secrets  from  an  officer 
of  a  navy  that  was  seriously  regarded. 

I  did  not  sleep  on  board  the  Formidable,  but  I  was  told 
that  I  was  a  member  of  the  wardroom  mess  in  every 
way  except  that  I  was  not  allowed  to  pay  any  mess  bill, 
because  that  was  paid  by  the  French  Government.  No 
restriction  whatever  seemed  to  be  placed  upon  me,  for 
I  went  into  the  conning-tower,  into  the  turrets,  into  the 
engine-rooms,  and  wherever  I  wished  to  go,  sometimes 
alone,  and  sometimes  with  an  officer  or  sailor.  I  did  not 
ask  many  questions,  of  course ;  but  I  never  saw  the  slight 
est  disinclination  to  give  me  any  information  I  asked 
for.  I  went  back  and  forth  in  the  navy-yard  whenever  I 
wished  night  or  day,  and  I  even  went  out  with  the  fleet 
when  it  exercised  at  fleet  maneuvers.  At  these  maneuv 
ers  I  usually  stood  on  the  bridge  with  the  captain  and 
other  officers,  and  saw  everything  that  they  did.  There 
were  twelve  battleships  in  the  fleet,  and  about  twenty- 
four  destroyers,  and  all  maneuvered  together.  I  had 
heard  a  great  deal  about  the  inefficiency  of  the  French 
Navy,  but  I  remember  wishing  that  the  United  States 
Navy  was  inefficient  in  the  same  way.  The  maneuvers 
seemed  to  me  to  be  conducted  with  perfect  skill  and 
success  and  at  the  highest  speed  attainable,  and  I  could 
see  nothing  to  criticize  unfavorably.  On  board  the  For 
midable  a  like  efficiency  seemed  to  prevail.  Everything 
was  done  quietly,  systematically,  and  effectively.  I  was 
present  at  a  number  of  conferences  on  the  subject  of  my 
range-finder,  held  by  the  captain  and  certain  officers  of 
the  ship.  The  captain  presided,  of  course,  and  I  was 
struck  with  the  fact  that,  though  the  officers  were  very 
respectful  to  him,  they  did  not  hesitate  in  the  slightest 
to  disagree  with  him  in  opinion.  The  captain's  name 
was,  I  think,  Roustan,  and  he  was  a  brother  to  the  French 
minister  to  the  United  States  at  that  time. 


142     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIEAL 

I  acquired  an  enormous  admiration  for  the  French 
Navy,  and  I  think  it  was  deserved.  How  this  magnificent 
navy  was  ruined  by  one  man,  Canaille  Pelletan,  who  was 
secretary  of  the  navy  for  four  years,  is  a  matter  of  world 
wide  knowledge  and  an  indication  of  the  conditions  of 
French  politics  at  that  time. 

It  is  also  a  warning  to  other  nations. 

The  only  time  wrhen  it  was  intimated  to  me  that  my 
presence  was  not  desired  on  board  was  one  evening  in 
the  Golfe  Juan,  about  fifty  miles  from  Toulon,  and 
perhaps  five  miles  from  Cannes,  where  the  French  fleet 
anchored  during  the  series  of  maneuvers.  In  the  latter 
part  of  the  afternoon  Savattier  said  to  me  that  one  of 
the  officers  of  the  ship  had  intimated  to  him  that  there 
was  to  be  a  sham  attack  on  the  fleet  that  night  by 
torpedo-boats,  and  that  perhaps  Lieutenant  Fiske  might 
feel  more  comfortable  on  shore. 

So  Savattier  and  I  went  ashore.  We  found  a  quiet 
country  inn,  and  Savattier  told  me  that  he  would  show 
me  what  a  beautiful  dinner  we  could  get  there  for  a  very 
small  price,  having  only  the  things  to  eat  and  the  wine  to 
drink  that  were  grown  in  the  immediate  locality.  I  re 
member  we  had  a  liter  of  red  wine  (a  liter  being  about 
one-tenth  more  than  a  quart)  and  that  it  cost  less  than 
a  franc.  Not  only  was  this  wine  delightful  to  the  taste, 
but  it  imparted  a  pleasant  feeling  of  content ;  so  that  the 
walk  to  Cannes  along  the  smooth,  hard  road,  past  beau 
tiful  villas,  with  green  lawns  and  trees  and  bright  flowers 
on  our  right  side,  with  the  occasional  sound  of  a  guitar 
and  voices  singing,  wrhile  the  dark-blue  Mediterranean 
was  on  our  left  side,  and  the  bright-blue  sky  was  over 
head,  the  whole  scene  illuminated  by  a  gorgeous  full 
moon,  made  a  picture  in  my  memory  much  clearer  and 
brighter  than  other  pictures  made  but  yesterday. 

The  second  watch  officer  of  the  Formidable  was  Lieu 
tenant  Viaud,  who  had  written  a  number  of  novels  over 
the  name  of  "Pierre  Loti,"  of  which  the  one  that  I  liked 
the  best  was  "Le  Mariage  de  Loti."  Viaud  was  a 


143 

quiet,  rather  small  man,  with  a  low  voice  and  a  manner 
more  courteous  even  than  is  usual  among  Frenchmen. 
His  diction  was  said  to  be  remarkably  pure  and  correct, 
even  to  a  degree  which  most  professional  literary  men 
could  not  equal,  though  he  was  not  a  student  of  rhetoric, 
and  had  been  educated  solely  as  a  naval  officer.  He 
called  on  me  one  day  at  the  Grand  Hotel,  and  sent  up  a 
modest  little  card,  on  which  was  printed  his  name  and 
rank.  At  one  time  I  left  Toulon  and  went  to  England, 
being  absent  from  Toulon  for  about  two  months.  Dur 
ing  this  interval  Viaud  was  elected  a  member  of  the 
French  Academy  under  the  name  of  Pierre  Loti. 
Shortly  after  I  returned  to  Toulon  he  again  called  upon 
me  at  the  hotel,  but  this  time  he  sent  up  an  enormous 
card  on  which  were  engraved  only  the  words  "  Pierre 
Loti." 

This  indicated  a  little  vanity,  perhaps,  but  it  was  not 
altogether  a  thing  to  be  wondered  at;  for  an  officer  of 
the  Formidable  explained  to  me  that  the  members  of  the 
French  Academy  outranked  not  only  every  officer  in 
the  navy,  but  everybody  else  in  France  except  the 
President. 

One  afternoon  when  I  was  going  ashore  in  the  boat 
after  the  mid-day  meal  I  remarked  that  I  had  a  head 
ache,  and  asked  what  was  good  for  it.  One  of  the  offi 
cers  said  that  absinthe  was  a  remedy.  I  told  him  I 
had  never  taken  absinthe,  but  should  like  to  try  it;  and 
I  asked  him  how  much  to  take.  He  told  me  to  go  to  a 
cafe  and  get  the  ordinary  drink  that  was  served.  I 
did  this,  and  swallowed  the  whole  drink,  though  I  did  not 
like  the  taste  at  all.  Then  I  walked  toward  the  hotel ;  but 
as  I  neared  it,  the  thought  occurred  to  me  that  perhaps, 
as  I  was  not  accustomed  to  absinthe,  it  might  intoxicate 
me,  and  that  therefore  I  had  better  walk  out  somewhere 
where  nobody  knew  me. 

I  did  this,  and  walked  for  a  considerable  time,  ob 
serving  my  gait  very  carefully  lest  I  stagger.  I  saw 
no  signs  of  this.  After  walking  perhaps  a  mile,  I  came 


144    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

to  a  small  inclosed  car  on  wheels,  such  as  photographers 
sometimes  use  in  the  United  States,  on  the  outside  of 
which  was  a  written  statement  to  the  effect  that  Madame 
Somebody  was  inside  the  car  and  that  she  could  read 
the  future.  It  occurred  to  me  at  once  that  this  was  a 
good  opportunity  for  me  to  ascertain  exactly  what  was 
going  to  happen  to  me  in  my  various  projects. 

So  I  knocked  at  the  door,  and  was  admitted  by  a  woman 
who  said  that  she  was  a  clairvoyant  and  could  tell  my 
fortune.  I  asked  her  how  much  she  charged,  and  she 
said  five  francs ;  then  correcting  herself  hastily,  she  said 
ten  francs.  I  told  her  I  was  very  glad  to  meet  her,  be 
cause  I  was  desirous  of  knowing  what  was  going  to 
happen  to  me.  So  she  told  me  what  was  going  to  hap 
pen  to  me,  and  I  gave  her  ten  francs.  Just  as  I  was 
about  to  go,  after  thanking  her  cordially,  she  told  me  that 
there  was  something  about  my  future  which  wras  very 
exciting  indeed.  I  asked  her  what  it  was,  and  she  said 
she  could  not  quite  see  unless  she  went  into  a  trance.  I 
asked  her  to  go  into  a  trance,  but  she  said  that  would 
cost  fifty  francs.  I  told  her  I  did  not  care  if  it  did, 
because  I  wanted  to  know.  Then  she  called  for  " Louis," 
and  Louis  came  into  the  little  room,  and  put  her  into  a 
trance,  and  she  told  me  the  most  wonderful  things. 

I  was  very  much  impressed  indeed,  and  I  walked  away 
with  a  feeling  of  great  elation ;  but  just  as  I  was  walking 
up  the  steps  of  the  Grand  Hotel,  some  cloud  seemed  sud 
denly  to  pass  out  of  my  mind,  and  I  saw  what  a  fool  I 
had  been.  The  next  day  I  told  some  of  the  officers  about 
it,  and  asked  if  it  could  have  been  due  to  the  absinthe, 
and  they  said,  yes.  One  of  them  told  me  that  if  a 
man  not  accustomed  to  absinthe  took  an  ordinary  drink 
of  it,  it  was  apt  to  give  him  "les  idees  bizarres,"  to  make 
him  partly  crazy  for  a  while. 


CHAPTER  XI 

SPEZZIA,  IL    TERRIBILE,   AND    CAP    BRU1ST 

DURING  the  time  that  the  first  trials  of  the  range- 
finder  were  going  on  aboard  the  Formidable,  I 
was  in  correspondence  with  the  ministry  of  marine  in 
Rome  about  having  my  range-finder  tried  on  board  an 
Italian  ship,  and  when  these  first  trials  were  com 
pleted  the  Italian  Government  had  given  their  consent. 
Previous  to  this  the  Italian  technical  and  other  papers 
had  devoted  considerable  attention  to  it. 

I  left  Toulon  for  Spezzia,  the  principal  naval  station  in 
Italy,  in  the  early  part  of  March,  having  sent  my  ap 
paratus  on  ahead.  As  I  did  not  speak  Italian,  the  com 
pany  kindly  loaned  to  me  a  man  as  interpreter  who 
spoke  both  French  and  Italian  and  whose  name  was 
Laurent  Bisio.  Bisio  was  of  the  upper  grade  of  work 
men,  but  he  was  one  of  the  handsomest  men  and  one  of 
the  most  distinct  characters  I  have  ever  met.  To  me  he 
seemed  always  to  be  acting.  Whether  he  was  or  not  I  do 
not  know;  but  he  seldom  said  anything  without  gesticulat 
ing,  and  his  gesticulations  were  not  little  awkward  jerks, 
but  wide  sweeps  of  the  arms  and  body,  accompanied  with 
what  might  be  called  facial  gestures.  When  I  first  met 
him,  realizing  that  I  might  keep  him  from  home  for 
weeks,  I  asked  him  if  he  was  married.  He  immedi 
ately  raised  both  arms  high  above  his  head  with  a  mag 
nificent  sweep,  launched  forward  with  his  left  foot,  which 
he  brought  down  smartly  on  the  floor,  rolled  his  eyes,  and 
exclaimed  in  a  loud  voice,  "Ma  foi,  pourquoi?"  ("My 
faith,  why?") 

He  went  to  Spezzia  ahead  of  me  with  the  apparatus, 
and  the  first  day  after  my  arrival  there  he  became  so 

145 


146     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIEAL 

angry  with  me  because  he  saw  me  talking  French  with 
some  Italian  officers  that  he  gave  a  dramatic  impersona 
tion  of  outraged  dignity  on  the  spot,  and  declared  his 
intention  of  going  back  to  Toulon  "toute  de  suite."  A 
little  judicious  flattery  brought  him  to  terms,  however; 
and  after  that  he  was  not  only  good  natured,  but  exceed 
ingly  efficient. 

As  I  had  never  been  in  Europe  before,  I  decided  to 
stop  one  night  at  Monte  Carlo.  I  arrived  there  about 
six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  partook  of  a  delightful  din 
ner  at  one  of  the  restaurants,  and  spent  the  evening  at 
the  casino.  Fortunately,  my  visit  happened  on  a  night 
when  the  moon  was  full  and  shining  from  an  almost 
cloudless  sky;  so  that  all  the  beauties  and  glories  of 
Monte  Carlo  in  the  moonlight  that  I  had  heard  about 
were  presented  to  me  in  their  perfection.  The  casino  and 
the  gambling-rooms  were  interesting  and  exciting,  and 
so  were  the  beautiful  women  whom  I  saw  strolling  about, 
clothed  in  the  latest  Parisian  styles,  and  exhibiting  the 
height  of  the  elegance  and  expensiveness  of  the  world  of 
fashion.  I  spent  the  entire  evening  in  the  casino,  so 
fascinated  with  the  scene  and  with  the  possibilities  which 
the  scene  suggested  that  I  felt  not  the  slightest  tempta 
tion  to  gamble  at  the  tables.  Had  I  stayed  there  longer, 
until  the  novelty  had  passed  away  and  the  tinselly  char 
acter  of  its  beauties  had  become  revealed,  doubtless  the 
temptation  to  gamble  would  have  come  to  me.  But  that 
first  night  and  only  night  I  spent  at  Monte  Carlo  pre 
sented  a  scene  so  wonderful  that  mere  gambling  seemed 
dull  and  tame. 

After  the  evening's  play  was  over,  I  walked  about  the 
beautiful  grounds  in  company  with  some  young  man 
who,  for  a  few  francs,  harrowed  my  soul  with  the  most 
ghastly  stories  of  suicide  I  had  ever  heard.  On  my  way 
to  the  hotel  afterward  I  half  expected  to  stumble  over 
suicides  at  short  intervals  on  the  sidewalk;  but  if  there 
were  any,  they  escaped  my  notice. 

Next  morning  I  was  to  take  the  train  at  ten  o'clock.     I 


SPEZZIA,  IL  TERRIBILE,  AND  CAP  BKUN     147 

had  a  small  trunk  with  me,  and  as  I  knew  I  should  have 
to  open  my  trunk  at  Vingtimille,  on  the  border  between 
France  and  Italy,  I  put  my  hand  into  my  pocket,  to  see 
if  I  had  my  trunk-key  with  me.  This  happened  at  the 
railroad  station,  while  I  was  waiting  for  the  train.  To 
my  horror,  I  could  not  find  my  key.  As  I  had  a  few  min 
utes  to  spare,  I  drove  quickly  back  to  the  hotel,  and  rushed 
to  my  room;  but  I  could  not  find  the  key.  I  interrogated 
everybody  I  could  see  there,  but  without  success.  So  I 
drove  down  to  the  station  again,  and  arrived  there  just 
in  time  to  catch  the  train. 

The  trip  to  Vingtimille  lasted  perhaps  three  hours, 
during  which  I  searched  my  pockets  at  intervals  to  find 
the  key,  but  without  success.  When  we  arrived  at 
Vingtimille,  our  trunks  were  taken  into  the  official  room 
for  examination,  and  I  was  asked  for  my  key.  I  remem 
ber  the  expression  of  mingled  contempt  and  incredulity 
on  the  face  of  the  examiner  when  I  told  him  I  had  lost 
my  key.  I  have  never  felt  more  like  the  "meek  in 
spirit"  than  I  did  then.  My  status  and  my  self-respect 
were  raised,  however,  when  I  produced  a  letter  from  the 
minister  of  marine  in  Rome.  The  official  then  said  he 
would  telegraph  to  Rome  and  get  permission  to  let  my 
trunk  go  through  without  examination;  but  that  the  an 
swer  could  not  possibly  come  back  in  time  to  let  me  take 
the  next  train,  and  I  would  have  to  wait  for  the  following 
train. 

So  I  walked  about  the  rocky  and  picturesque  old  town, 
which  was  so  strangely  placed  on  the  side  of  a  moun 
tain  that  it  looked  >as  if  a  man  could  fall  from  one  end 
of  the  town  to  the  other  and  break  his  neck. 

Finally,  a  favorable  answer  came,  and  I  took  the  fol 
lowing  train  for  Spezzia.  Feeling  much  relieved,  I  sat 
down  on  my  seat  in  my  compartment,  and  thrust  my 
hands  into  my  trousers-pockets  with  a  feeling  of  con 
tent.  There  in  my  right  pocket,  where  it  had  been  all 
the  time,  was  the  key  of  my  trunk ! 

Experiences  a  little  like  this  have   occurred  to  me 


148     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

sometimes  since.  I  suppose  the  reason  is  that,  if  the 
mind  is  intent  on  any  subject, — if,  for  instance,  it  is  try 
ing  to  reason  out  the  whereabouts  of  a  lost  article, — 
the  fingers  lose  their  sensitiveness  temporarily.  The 
mind  cannot  be  concentrated  on  two  things  at  the  same 
time. 

I  arrived  at  Spezzia  late  in  the  afternoon,  about  dusk, 
and  just  before  dinner,  an  excellent  time  for  arriving 
anywhere.  I  was  driven  to  the  Grand  Hotel,  and  then 
there  ensued  half  an  hour  of  talking  and  bargaining  with 
the  hotel  proprietor  about  the  room  I  was  to  have,  the 
various  extras  which  I  desired,  and  the  prices  I  should 
have  to  pay.  After  a  long  and  laborious  discussion,  it 
was  arranged  that  I  should  have  a  large  and  handsome 
room,  with  light  on  two  sides,  finished  in  red,  and  that 
I  should  have  a  certain  large  number  of  candles,  hot 
water,  etc.,  with  three  meals,  and  red  and  white  wines  for 
lunch  and  dinner,  all  for  ten  francs,  or  about  $1.90,  per 
day. 

I  stayed  in  Spezzia  for  about  two  weeks.  I  think  I  had 
a  better  time  in  Spezzia  in  those  two  weeks  than  I  had 
ever  had  before  or  have  ever  had  since.  Vice-Admiral 
Racchia,  the  commandant  of  the  station,  did  me  the  honor 
to  call  on  me  and  ask  me  to  dinner  for  the  following 
evening.  It  seemed  to  me  that  virtually  all  the  naval 
officers  in  Spezzia  did  the  same  thing.  They  seemed  to 
make  me  the  guest  not  only  of  the  station,  but  of  every 
officer  in  the  station.  There  was  a  delightful  company 
at  the  hotel  also,  mostly  army  and  navy  people ;  and  after 
dinner,  during  which  there  was  always  music  by  a  band 
or  orchestra,  the  entire  party  would  assemble  in  the 
parlor  for  social  conversation  and  for  piano  music  and 
singing  of  a  social  kind.  Of  course  the  music  was  al 
ways  good. 

The  admiral's  aid  was  a  lieutenant  named  Scotti.  One 
day  we  were  walking  in  the  arsenal,  or  navy-yard,  and  he 
suddenly  exclaimed,  "Oh,  you  are  an  inventor;  perhaps 
you  would  be  interested  in  a  new  American  invention 


149 

which  we  have  just  received."  I  followed  him  into  the 
admiral's  offices,  and  Scotti  took,  me  up  to  a  desk,  on 
which  was  an  object  covered  with  a  black  cloth.  Scotti 
removed  this  cloth  and  disclosed  a  type-writer.  I  asked 
him  what  it  was,  and  he  said  it  was  an  invention  for 
writing.  Then  he  put  a  piece  of  paper  into  the  machine, 
and  struck  the  key  marked  "A, "  and  then  showed  me 
"A"  printed  on  the  paper.  I  asked  him  if  he  thought  it 
was  a  good  invention,  and  he  replied  about  as  follows : 

''Well,  it  is  very  ingenious,  but  I  do  not  know  whether 
it  is  practical  or  not.  Of  course  it  has  the  advantage  that 
it  is  clearer  than  the  handwriting  of  some  men;  but  on 
the  other  hand  it  has  a  disadvantage  of  being  extremely 
slow." 

My  range-finder  was  installed  on  board  a  small  >ship 
called  II  Terribile.  We  went  out  day  after  day,  making 
tests  with  the  instrument.  These  tests  were  conducted 
with  the  greatest  care  and  precision  by  a  special  board 
of  which  the  head  was  a  rear-admiral.  I  had  never  been 
in  Italy  before,  and  so  the  memory  of  those  radiant  days, 
steaming  over  the  blue-watered  Bay  of  Spezzia,  sur 
rounded  by  picturesque  mountains,  and  rocks  and 
campaniles,  when  the  weather  was  neither  hot  nor  cold, 
in  the  company  of  those  delightful  men,  made  an  impres 
sion  on  my  mind  and  heart  that  is  clear  and  beautiful 
still. 

I  had  made  arrangements  with  the  War  Department  of 
Italy  also  for  tests  of  my  range-finder  in  some  fort,  but 
for  some  reason  which  I  do  not  now  recall  I  had  to  leave 
Italy  and  give  up  the  trials. 

I  did  not  return  to  Toulon  then,  but  went  direct  to 
Paris  by  way  of  Genoa,  Turin,  and  the  Mont  Cenis 
Tunnel.  The  only  things  I  remember  about  Genoa  are 
the  facts  that  I  had  to  wait  there  two  or  three  hours, 
that  I  was  much  struck  with  the  natural  beauty  of  the 
place,  that  I  brought  my  wife  a  pretty  sample  of  the 
Genoese  jeweler's  art,  that  while  I  sat  at  lunch  in  some 
restaurant  a  lady  near  me  asked  me  what  time  it  was,  that 


150     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

when  the  proprietor  presented  me  with  my  bill  it  in 
cluded  a  payment  for  that  lady's  lunch,  and  that  I  de 
clined  the  honor  of  paying  for  it. 

I  had  engaged  and  paid  for  a  berth  in  a  sleeping-car 
for  my  trip  from  Turin  to  Paris ;  but  when  I  applied  for 
my  ticket  half  an  hour  before  the  train  left,  I  was  told 
that  I  could  not  have  the  berth,  because  an  English  gen 
tleman  had  subsequently  taken  both  berths  in  that  com 
partment,  although  he  needed  only  one.  When  I  remon 
strated,  I  was  told  that  I  could  have  my  money  back, 
but  could  n't  have  the  berth.  As  I  was  due  in  Paris  the 
next  morning,  I  was  confronted  with  the  necessity  of 
sitting  up  all  night  or  else  persuading  the  English  gentle 
man  to  let  me  have  my  berth.  I  explained  matters  to 
him,  and  met  with  the  reception  that  one  often  met  with 
from  Englishmen  in  those  days  when  traveling.  So 
I  accepted  the  situation  as  good  naturedly  as  I  could. 

On  getting  to  my  compartment  just  before  the  train 
started,  I  found  it  occupied  by  a  powerfully  built  man, 
who  greeted  me  very  pleasantly,  and  with  whom  I  soon 
entered  into  an  interesting  conversation.  He  was  evi 
dently  an  Irishman;  in  fact,  he  told  me  that  he  was  a 
doctor  who  lived  in  Dublin,  and  that  he  had  just  taken 
a  patient  to  the  warm  climate  of  the  Riviera.  We  made 
the  long  trip  through  the  tunnel  pleasantly,  and  I  soon 
declared  him  to  myself  to  be  such  an  extremely  agreeable 
man  that  I  was  almost  glad  that  I  had  lost  my  berth. 
As  time  went  on,  however,  I  gradually  realized  that,  no 
matter  what  subject  I  talked  about,  he  would  soon  get 
back  to  another  subject,  and  that  other  subject  was  al 
ways  the  same.  I  could  get  him  off  that  subject  with 
little  difficulty,  but  I  could  not  keep  him  off.  By  the  time 
it  was  nightfall  I  realized  that  I  was  to  spend  the  night 
with  a  man  who  was  almost  a  lunatic,  if  not  wholly  so, 
and  I  noted  that  he  seemed  to  be  gradually  becoming 
excited.  I  was  entirely  unarmed,  and  we  were  alone  in  a 
compartment  that  was  locked  on  the  outside.  I  humored 
him,  but  at  the  same  time  kept  a  steady  eye  on  him. 


SPEZZIA,  1L  TERRIBILE,  AND  CAP  BRUN     151 

Finally,  about  ten  o'clock,  we  made  a  stop  somewhere, 
and  an  extremely  unattractive  and  half -dirty  man  got  into 
the  compartment.  I  almost  embraced  him. 

After  spending  a  fortnight  with  my  little  family  at  the 
Hotel  Lafond  in  Paris,  I  went  to  London,  arriving  in 
the  early  days  of  April.  The  next  morning  after  break 
fast  I  recognized  two  unfortunate  conditions,  one  that 
I  had  contracted  a  cold  in  the  head  and  the  other  that  it 
was  a  holiday.  I  was  confronted  with  a  gloomy  day. 
Glancing  about  the  room,  I  saw  on  a  table  a  little  book 
which  had  what  seemed  to  me  an  extremely  silly  name, 
"Three  Men  in  a  Boat,  to  Say  Nothing  of  the  Dog."  I 
opened  its  pages  almost  in  disgust,  but  immediately  saw 
something  that  made  me  laugh. 

I  did  not  stir  from  that  room  the  rest  of  the  day 
except  to  take  two  scanty  meals,  and  despite  gloomy 
weather  and  a  cold,  I  spent  one  of  the  most  mirthful  days 
I  can  now  recall. 

During  the  time  of  my  absence  from  England  the 
British  Admiralty  had  consented  to  try  my  range-finder, 
and  Elliot  Brothers  had  made  arrangements  to  have  it 
installed  on  board  a  small  vessel  of  perhaps  eight  hun 
dred  tons,  called  the  Sea  Gull.  So  I  went  to  Portsmouth, 
which  is  one  of  the  great  naval  stations  of  England,  and 
there  I  met  a  lot  of  naval  officers  at  Whale  Island.  The 
contrast  between  the  British  officers  and  the  French  and 
Italian  was  noticeable.  The  British  officers  were  evij 
dently  more  energetic  and  hardy,  but  apparently  less  pre 
cise  and  thoughtful  and  also  les-s  polite. 

They  gave  my  range-finder  some  very  common-sense 
trials,  however,  and  the  instrument  did  all  that  I  had 
claimed  for  it.  I  was  extremely  disquieted,  however,  by 
the  performance  of  another  range-finder  that  was  tried 
in  competition  with  mine.  It  was  an  "optical"  range- 
finder,  which  required  only  one  observer,  and  was  much 
simpler  and  cheaper  than  mine.  It  did  not  give  so  good 
results  as  mine,  but  it  gave  much  better  results  than  I  had 
supposed  possible,  and  I  was  enough  of  an  optician  and 


152     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

mechanician  to  realize  that  it  could  be  improved,  and  that 
possibly  it  might  be  improved  to  such  a  degree  as  to  off 
set  the  superiority  in  accuracy  and  quickness  which  mine 
had  thus  far  established  over  all  others.  As  years  went 
by,  my  unhappy  expectation  was  fulfilled,  not  by  that  par 
ticular  instrument,  but  by  one  considerably  like  it.  The 
instrument  tried  in  the  Sea  Gull  was  invented  by  a  man 
named  Mallock,  a  brother  of  William  H.  Mallock,  who 
wrote  "Is  Life  Worth  Living?"  The  improvement  was 
made  by  two  young  Scotch  professors  named  Barr  and 
Stroud,  and  it  consisted  mainly  in  forming  a  separate 
image  on  the  focal  plane  of  the  rays  of  light  coming  from 
each  object  glass.  The  two  images  were  separated  by  a 
vertical  line  instead  of  moving  about  together  on  the 
focal  plane. 

Shortly  after  arriving  in  London,  I  had  called  on  Mr. 
Dredge,  the  editor  of  Engineering,  and  shown  him  pic 
tures  of  my  instruments  and  the  official  reports  and  tabu 
lated  results  of  my  trials  in  the  Formidable  and  the 
Terribile.  He  expressed  himself  as  much  interested,  but 
he  kept  most  of  the  conversation  on  the  subject  of  flowers 
and  their  culture,  which  he  said  wrere  the  only  really  in 
teresting  things  in  the  world  to  him. 

In  the  course  of  our  conversation  I  told  him  I  had 
noticed  that  all  the  great  cities  in  the  world  were  in  bad 
climates,  and  that  regions  where  the  climate  was  de 
lightful  were  very  sparsely  populated;  and  I  asked  him 
why  this  was.  He  answered  that  the  most  beautiful 
flowers  did  not  grow  in  good  climates,  but  in  bad  climates, 
where  it  was  necessary  to  give  them  special  care  in  hot 
houses;  and  that  human  beings,  similarly,  could  not  be 
come  especially  fine  unless  they  lived  in  climates  where 
they  had  to  be  treated  in  a  way  like  hothouse  flowers. 
Some  time  afterward  I  proposed  the  same  question  to 
the  wardroom  mess  of  the  Formidable.  No  one  seemed 
to  have  an  answer  ready,  but  finally  the  senior  watch 
officer  said,  "II  faut  lutter."  ("It  is  necessary  to  strug 
gle.") 


SPEZZIA,  IL  TERRIBILE,  AND  CAP  BRUN     153 

About  two  weeks  after  my  conversation  with  Mr. 
Dredge,  I  was  surprised  to  see  in  front  of  me  in  some 
window  "FISKE'S  RANGE-FINDER  AND  ELEVA 
TION-INDICATOR,"  together  with  some  excellent  illus 
trations  and  diagrams.  Looking  a  little  more  closely,  I 
saw  that  they  were  printed  on  a  page  of  Engineering, 
dated  April  24,  1891,  and  that  the  descriptions  and  illus 
trations  covered  a  page  and  a  quarter  of  that  very  im 
portant  and  influential  periodical.  After  full  descrip 
tions  of  the  theory  and  construction  of  the  range-finder 
and  the  ''elevation-indicator"  ("  telescope  sight"), 
Engineering  quoted  from  the  official  reports  of  the 
Formidable  and  the  Terribile.  In  the  Terribile  the  base 
was  only  58.9  meters  long,  and  even  with  this  short  base 
the  average  error  at  2000  meters  was  found  to  be  only 
2.6  per  cent.,  or  52  yards;  and  at  3000  meters  to  be  3.9 
per  cent.,  or  117  meters,  an  accuracy  sufficient  for  the 
naval  gunnery  of  those  days,  and  unequaled  until  then. 

The  elevation-indicator  was  described  and  illustrated, 
and  the  fact  was  pointed  out  that  it  could  be  mounted 
either  on  a  gun-carriage  or  "on  the  conning-tower  of 
the  ship,"  and  that  it  "substitutes  for  the  uncertain  line 
of  the  gun^sights  the  optical  axis  of  an  accurate  tele 
scope." 

Despite  the  thorough  publicity  given  to  my  elevation- 
indicator  then,  as  well  as  formerly  in  publications  more 
obscure,  no  one  has  ever  disputed  my  title  to  the  inven 
tion  and  development  of  the  telescope  sight  not  only  as 
placed  on  a  gun,  but  also  as  installed  in  a  ship,  so  as 
to  direct  the  fire  of  the  whole  battery.  Yet  one  sees  ref 
erences  occasionally  to  "Sir  Percy  Scott's  gun-director 
System"! 

On  September  29, 1891,  The  New  York  Times  published 
half  a  column  account  of  it,  with  the  head-lines : 

"A  New  Naval  Instrument. 

' '  The  Yorktown  Equipping  with  Telescopic  Gun-Direc 
tors." 

The  article  was  carefully  written,  and  described  cor- 


154     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIEAL 

rectly  and  clearly  the  construction  and  method  of  opera 
tion  of  the  instrument.     One  paragraph  read  as  follows : 

The  new  device  is  the  invention  of  Lieut.  B.  A.  Fiske  of  the 
navy.  Lieut.  Fiske  was  the  first  imbued  with  the  idea  of  fitting 
a  single  telescope  sight  in  the  conning  tower;  and,  by  suitable 
circuit  arrangements,  worked  both  at  the  gun  and  in  the  conning 
tower,  firing  from  the  latter  position:  In  other  words,  it  was 
proposed  that  the  crew  of  each  piece  load  its  gun,  give  it  the 
necessary  lateral  train,  and  angle  of  elevation,  then  close  a  cir 
cuit,  and  await  the  actual  firing.  This  would  be  effected  from 
the  conning  tower,  by  the  closing  of  a  second  circuit,  at  the 
moment  of  target  and  cross  hair  intersection. 

The  article  then  stated  that  I  recognized  the  fact  that 
if  that  scheme  were  adopted,  "the  functions  [of  each  gun 
crew]  would  become  little  better  than  those  of  coal  heav 
ers,"  and  that  "in  consequence,  Lieut.  Fiske  decided  to 
fit  his  sight  to  'each  gun,  and  thus  allow  individual  shoot 
ing  to  count."  This  did  not  state  quite  correctly  my  rea 
son.  My  reason  was  that  in  those  days  ships  were  not 
constructed  so  accurately  as  now,  and  it  would  have 
been  virtually  impossible  to  know  in  the  conning-tower 
what  the  elevations  of  the  various  guns  were,  because 
of  the  fact  that  the  gun-tracks  were  not  necessarily  paral 
lel  to  one  another.  I  never  abandoned  the  idea,  but 
I  had  to  wait  for  better  ships. 

At  this  time  I  received  a  telescope  sight  from  New 
York  and  another  range-finder.  I  had  Elliot  Brothers 
make  some  changes  in  the  range-finder,  and  then  I  took 
both  to  Paris.  Going  across  the  channel,  the  weather 
was  very  sloppy.  As  we  neared  the  French  coast,  I  went 
forward  near  the  bow.  Seeing  no  one  near,  and  feeling 
inspired  by  the  sight  ahead  and  the  fresh  breeze,  I  de 
claimed  some  lines  from  "Richelieu,"  ending  "France, 
beloved  France,  who  shall  proclaim  divorce  'twixt  me 
and  thee?"  Unfortunately  for  my  peace  of  mind,  a 
feminine  titter  sounded  in  my  ears  just  then,  and  I  saw 
a  young  woman  and  a  young  man  gazing  at  me  with  evi 
dent  amusement  from  the  shelter  of  a  deck-house. 


155 

I  ran  up  to  Berlin  from  Paris  not  because  I  thought 
there  was  any  chance  of  introducing  my  range-finder  into 
the  German  Navy  or  because  I  cared  very  much  about  it, 
for  at  that  time  the  German  Navy  was  not  seriously  re 
garded.  I  thought  I  ought  to  go  to  Berlin  before  going 
to  the  United  States,  and  I  was  glad  afterward  that  I 
went.  I  was  tremendously  impressed  with  the  orderli 
ness  and  precision  and  cleanliness  of  everything.  Effi 
ciency  was  evident  to  the  most  casual  glance.  I  did  not 
see  any  large  military  forces,  but  those  I  did  see  im 
pressed  me  as  indicating  a  greater  degree  of  precision 
and  energy  than  I  had  noted  in  the  soldiers  in  Paris. 

On  the  way  back,  I  occupied  a  compartment  during 
the  day  with  a  man  about  my  own  age  who  read  several 
books  he  had  with  him,  some  in  Russian,  some  in  German, 
and  some  in  French.  We  conversed  occasionally  during 
the  day  in  English,  which  he  spoke  as  well  as  I.  I  do 
not  know  who  he  was,  but  the  next  morning,  when  we  ar 
rived  in  Paris,  he  was  met  by  a  handsome  carriage,  with 
men  in  livery,  and  a  tall  lady  who  was  richly  dressed. 

After  a  short  stay  in  Paris,  I  went  again  to  Toulon. 
The  tests  made  on  board  the  Formidable  had  been 
declared  by  the  board  to  be  successful;  but  it  was  stipu 
lated  that,  before  the  instrument  could  be  accepted,  the 
needle  of  the  volt-meter  would  have  to  be  made  about 
twice  as  long  and  the  scale  twice  as  wide  in  order  that 
the  indications  might  be  more  easily  read.  The  stipula 
tion  was  a  wise  one  in  a  way,  but  it  was  extremely  difficult 
to  carry  out,  because  it  entailed  such  changes  in  the  volt 
meter  as  might  ruin  it  altogether  unless  they  were  very 
skilfully  made.  As  I  had  only  two  volt-meters  with  me, 
and  as  they  were  of  American  pattern  and  of  a  kind  that 
no  one  in  France  knew  much  about,  I  was  extremely  loath 
to  make  the  attempt.  I  saw  that  I  must  do  so,  however, 
and  so  I  borrowed  from  Savattier  the  most  skilful  work 
man  he  had,  and  promised  to  give  the  workman  one  hun 
dred  and  fifty  francs  if  he  would  make  the  change  suc 
cessfully. 


156     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

The  whole  job  of  making  the  change  did  not  take  more 
than  two  hours,  but  when  the  anxiety  was  over,  I  felt 
as  if  I  had  done  a  hard  day 's  work.  The  workman  him 
self  realized  the  danger  of  a  careless  or  clumsy  move 
ment  on  his  part,  and  evidently  relaxed  when  his  last 
touch  had  been  given ;  for  when  I  handed  him  his  hundred 
and  fifty  francs,  he  stretched  out  a  trembling  hand  to 
receive  it. 

Shortly  after  reaching  Paris  on  my  first  visit,  I  had 
called  at  the  office  of  the  Artillerie  de  Terre  to  arrange 
for  a  trial  of  my  range-finder  in  a  fort.  The  officers 
there  were  extremely  courteous  and  evidently  interested. 
The  one  whom  I  remember  the  best  is  Captain  Gr.  Moch, 
who  later  wrote  an  article  for  the  Revue  d' Artillerie  on 
my  system  of  range-finding  and  gun-pointing.  My  first 
visit  to  this  office  was  only  a  few  days  after  I  had  landed 
in  Paris,  and  I  remember  my  feelings  when  I  was  sud 
denly  confronted  with  the  necessity  of  talking  French  to 
a  dozen  men  at  the  same  time.  They  were  so  extremely 
polite,  however,  and  gave  me  such  grave  assurances  as 
to  the  beauty  of  my  French,  that  I  was  encouraged  to  go 
ahead.  I  know  that  I  must  have  made  a  great  many  mis 
takes,  but  no  sign  of  this  fact  did  any  of  them  betray. 

So,  at  Toulon,  after  putting  the  range-finder  back  on 
board  the  Formidable  for  the  additional  trial  needed,  to 
see  if  the  changes  demanded  by  the  board  had  been  satis 
factorily  made,  Savattier  and  I  got  to  work  on  the  other, 
to  get  it  ready  to  be  installed  in  a  fort  at  Cap  Brun. 
While  we  were  getting  it  ready,  one  of  the  officers  of  the 
fort  came  to  make  a  preliminary  examination  of  it. 
He  conducted  the  proceedings  with  a  great  deal  of 
solemnity  and  went  into  every  detail.  After  he  left, 
Savattier  said  to  me  in  a  perfectly  matter-of-fact  way, 
"II  est  presque  idiot."  ("He  is  almost  an  idiot.") 

It  did  not  take  Savattier  and  me  a  long  time  to  get  the 
range-finder  ready,  and  for  the  army  officers  there  to 
have  it  transported  to  Cap  Brun.  There  the  instruments 
were  installed  in  two  positions  somewhat  more  than  a 


SPEZZIA,  1L  TEERIB1LE,  AND  CAP  BEUN     157 

hundred  yards  apart,  thus  giving  a  long  base-line.  In 
many  ways  the  conditions  were  ideal  for  accurate  range- 
finding  as  compared  with  the  conditions  on  board  ship, 
because  of  the  steady  platform,  the  long  base,  and  the 
great  clearness  of  the  air  which  usually  prevailed.  In 
one  way  the  conditions  were  more  difficult,  and  that  was 
that  the  great  changes  of  temperature  caused  by  a  bright 
sun  in  the  day-time  and  great  radiation  in  the  night 
time,  which  always  prevail  in  a  clear  atmosphere,  caused 
considerable  changes  in  the  resistances  of  the  electrical 
circuit. 

Anticipating  this,  I  had  made  the  wires  connecting  the 
two  instruments  very  large,  and  had  covered  them  with 
lead,  so  that  they  could  be  buried  in  the  earth.  On  the 
first  trial  we  found  the  change  in  resistance  so  great  as 
seriously  to  affect  the  accuracy  of  the  instrument;  but 
by  burying  the  wires  deeply,  and  then  more  deeply  still, 
we  managed  to  overcome  the  trouble. 

The  officers  of  the  Artillerie  de  Terre  were  much  in 
terested  in  this  instrument,  because  of  the  simplicity  of 
the  apparatus  and  the  extreme  quickness — almost  in- 
stantaneousness — with  which  it  gave  indications  of  dis 
tances  and  angles.  The  officer  who  took  the  most  inter 
est  was  a  Captain  Fabre,  who  belonged  in  the  central 
office  in  Paris.  He  came  from  Paris  to  Toulon  to  take 
direct  charge  of  the  experiments,  and  to  be  the  head  of 
the  board  which  reported  the  results  achieved.  When 
the  experiments  were  finished,  the  officers  did  not  at 
tempt  to  hide  from  me  the  gratification  which  they  felt, 
and  the  future  which  they  thought  they  foresaw. 

I  took  with  me  from  London  to  Toulon  the  elevation- 
indicator,  which  I  called  a  " telescopic  sight,"  and  which 
the  French  called  "hausse  telescopique."  I  took  it  on 
board  the  Formidable,  and  explained  it  to  the  officers ;  but 
while  they  were  quite  polite,  I  could  see  that  they  did 
not  regard  it  favorably.  Some  of  them  seemed  to  re 
gard  it  as  too  scientific,  and  others  as  not  scientific 
enough.  This  latter  class  had  become  much  impressed 


158     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAE-ADMIEAL 

with  an  experiment  which  had  been  recently  made  on 
board  a  French  battle-ship,  in  which  a  lens  of  great  focal 
length  had  been  so  placed  on  a  gun  that  the  rays  of 
light  from  a  distant  target  and  from  the  gun-sights  were 
so  concentrated  by  the  lens  on  a  screen  that  the  two 
images  were  seen  together,  the  turret  being  made  com 
pletely  dark.  On  one  occasion  the  captain's  little  daugh 
ter  was  told  to  press  an  electric  key,  which  the  gunnery 
officer  put  into  her  hand,  just  as  soon  as  she  saw  the  im 
age  of  the  gun-sight  on  the  screen  meet  the  picture  of  the 
target.  She  did  so,  and  the  shell  hit  the  target.  I  must 
admit  that  this  French  scheme  alarmed  me  considerably, 
though  I  did  not  think  it  as  good  as  mine.  Mine  was 
ultimately  declared  to  be  the  better. 

Before  leaving  New  York  I  had  invented  a  plan  for 
signaling  ranges  from  the  range-finder  to  the  guns.  My 
plan  was  to  produce  a  complete  gunnery  system  whereby 
I  could  measure  the  ranges  with  a  range-finder,  telegraph 
the  ranges  to  the  guns  with  a  range-indicator,  and  utilize 
the  ranges  for  hitting  the  target  by  an  absolutely  ac 
curate  telescope  sight.  Naturally,  I  talked  about  this 
system  to  all  the  officers  I  met,  though  I  did  not  have 
with  me  any  range-indicator  apparatus  for  the  reason 
that  I  had  not  yet  constructed  any.  In  the  light  of  sub 
sequent  events  I  remember  with  interest  the  fact  that 
the  idea  which  pleased  them  most  was  the  range-indicator, 
and  the  idea  that  pleased  them  least  was  the  telescope 
sight.  I  do  not  think  there  was  a  single  officer  to  whom 
I  spoke  about  the  telescope  sight  who  showed  the  slightest 
respect  for  it.  The  British  officers  did  not  seem  enough 
interested  in  the  idea  even  to  consider  it,  while  the 
French  and  Italian  officers  thought  it  very  interesting,  but 
unpractical.  The  idea  of  attaching  a  telescope  to  a  big 
gun  and  firing  the  gun  with  the  telescope  on  it  seemed 
preposterous.  I  knew  that  it  was  an  old  idea  to  use  a 
telescope  for  pointing  a  gun  in  a  fort,  but  that  the  tele 
scope  was  pulled  off  the  gun  smartly  just  before  the 


159 

gun  was  fired.  Of  course,  while  such  a  scheme  might 
work  fairly  well  in  connection  with  a  fixed  gun  on  land, 
it  could  not  be  successfully  used  on  board  a  rolling  ship. 

In  the  latter  part  of  August  the  range-finder  on  board 
the  Formidable  and  the  range-finder  at  Cap  Brun  were 
declared  to  be  successes,  and  both  instruments  were  ac 
cepted  by  the  French  Government.  So  I  returned  to 
Paris  believing  that  I  had  made  the  most  important  in 
vention  in  gunnery  appliances,  for  use  on  both  land  and 
sea,  that  had  been  made  for  many  years.  In  fact,  I  was 
told  so  by  many  people.  This  belief  was  strengthened 
when  I  reached  Paris  by  receiving  several  copies  of  a 
pamphlet  of  thirty-six  pages,  issued  by  the  Revue  d'Artil- 
lerie,  with  the  title  "Appareils  Telemetriques  et  de- 
Pointage,  Systeme  Fiske,  Par  G.  Moch,  Capitaine 
D'Artillerie."  Captain  Moch's  pamphlet  went  into  the 
subject  very  carefully,  mainly  from  the  point  of  view  of 
an  army  officer,  but  largely  from  the  point  of  view  of 
naval  gunnery  as  well  as  army  gunnery.  His  conclusions 
were  highly  favorable. 

The  translation  of  one  of  the  sentences  at  the  end  of 
his  pamphlet  is,  "We  believe  that  the  principle  common 
to  all  the  apparatus  which  we  have  described  is  able  to 
be  generalized,  and  to  supply  a  great  help  to  all  the 
sciences  which  rest  upon  measurements  of  precision." 

This  pamphlet  was  followed  shortly  afterward  by  a 
similar,  but  more  extensive,  one,  written  by  an  Italian 
named  Santarelli,  who  had  been  a  civilian  member  of 
the  board  that  had  tried  my  range-finder  in  the  Terribile. 

Naturally  I  came  to  feel  that  I  had  made  an  invention 
which  was  not  only  of  value  in  gunnery,  but  capable  of 
application  to  many  other  arts.  This  belief  I  still  hold, 
and  it  is  a  matter  of  great  regret  to  me  that  I  had  to 
give  up  developing  it.  It  must  be  understood  that,  if  a 
man  gives  up  an  invention  before  he  has  brought  it  to 
perfection,  the  invention  soon  becomes  discredited,  and 
further  progress  with  it  by  others  is  virtually  stopped, 


160    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

because  other  men  look  on  it  as  something  which  has 
proved  to  be  unpractical,  and  which  therefore  should  be 
avoided. 

My  wife  and  I,  with  our  little  daughter  Carrie,  went  to 
Havre  by  train,  arriving  there  the  night  before  sailing. 
The  hotel  seemed  a  rather  gay  place  for  a  respectable 
family,  and  I  was  not  pleased  to  see  in  one  of  the  rooms 
on  the  ground  floor  a  gambling  machine  called  les 
chevaux  (the  horses),  in  which  one  bet  on  certain  me 
chanical  horses  that  ran  around  a  ring.  On  retiring 
that  evening  I  spoke  of  the  gambling-machine  to  my 
wife,  and  she  said,  "Yes,  Carrie  won  ten  francs." 

We  had  a  stormy  voyage  to  New  York,  and  a  fire  on 
board  besides.  In  the  old  Normandle,  as  in  the  French 
fleet,  I  looked  in  vain  for  those  signs  of  inefficiency  and 
intense  excitability  that  I  had  heard  so  much  about  as 
characteristic  of  the  French  in  emergencies  at  sea. 


CHAPTER  XII 

CRUISING  IN   THE   ATLANTIC   AND   PACIFIC   OCEANS   AND 
THE    BERING    SEA 

TWO  or  three  days  after  our  return  to  New  York  I 
went  on  board  the  Yorktown,  then  alongside  the 
dock  at  the  navy-yard  in  Brooklyn  to  see  what  results 
had  been  achieved  with  the  telescope  sight  at  target  prac 
tice.  I  knew  the  telescope  sight  had  been  attached  to 
the  carriage  of  the  forward  six-inch  gun  on  the  starboard 
side,  but  I  had  not  been  able  to  learn  what  results  had 
been  attained.  Commander  F.  E.  Chadwick  had  been 
the  captain  when  the  sight  had  been  installed  about  a 
year  before;  Commander  Bobley  D.  Evans  had  recently 
taken  his  place. 

I  went  into  the  cabin,  and  was  politely  received  by  the 
captain,  who  offered  me  a  cigar.  To  my  surprise,  he  did 
not  tell  me  about  the  telescope  sight,  and  when  I  finally 
broached  the  subject,  he  told  me  he  had  never  heard  of 
it.  I  then  told  him  what  it  was,  and  that  it  had  been 
attached  to  one  of  the  guns  in  his  ship.  He  seemed  to 
be  extremely  surprised,  and  at  once  sent  for  Lieutenant 
Bradbury,  the  ordnance  officer. 

When  Bradbury  came  into  the  cabin,  and  the  captain 
asked  him  if  he  knew  anything  about  the  telescope  sight, 
he  seemed  nonplussed  for  a  while ;  but  finally  he  said  that 
he  thought  it  was  on  board  somewhere,  perhaps  in  the 
ordnance  storeroom.  The  captain  told  him  to  please  find 
out.  Bradbury  left  the  cabin,  and  returned  in  about  fif 
teen  minutes  with  a  gunner's  mate,  who  had  the  telescope 
sight  in  his  arms.  The  captain  seemed  interested,  and 
said  he  would  like  me  to  come  on  board  some  day  and 
show  them  how  to  attach  it  to  the  gun ;  in  which  case,  he 

161 


162     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

said,  he  would  have  the  navy-yard  workmen  secure  it 
there.  I  told  him  that  had  all  been  done,  and  that  I  could 
put  the  instrument  in  place  in  two  minutes.  So  we  went 
forward  to  the  forecastle,  where  the  gun  was,  and  I  se 
cured  the  telescope  sight  in  place.  I  then  explained  to 
them  how  it  was  to  operate,  and  how  simple  it  was.  I 
could  see  that  they  both  understood  how  to  use  it,  but 
that  they  did  not  regard  it  seriously. 

As  my  leave  was  now  finished,  I  foresaw  that  I  should 
soon  have  to  decide  whether  to  resign  from  the  navy 
and  devote  myself  to  the  development  of  my  inventions, 
or  return  to  the  navy  and  enter  again  the  comparatively 
uninteresting,  but  more  secure,  career  of  the  naval  officer. 
It  was  now  the  beginning  of  October,  1891,  and  I  was 
just  thirty-seven  years  old.  The  new  navy  was  pro 
gressing;  but  the  people  of  the  United  States  did  not 
regard  it  very  seriously,  and  there  were  no  indications 
whatever  that  a  man  of  my  age  and  rank  could  have  any 
sort  of  career.  My  age  was  such,  in  comparison  with 
that  of  officers  near  me  in  rank,  that  I  knew  I  must  even 
tually  become  a  rear-admiral,  the  highest  rank  then  held ; 
but  I  knew  also  that  I  would  not  obtain  this  rank,  ac 
cording  to  the  prospects  then  existing,  until  a  very  short 
time  before  I  retired  at  the  age  of  sixty-two.  I  made  as 
accurate  a  calculation  as  I  could,  based  on  the  theory  of 
probabilities,  and  concluded  that  I  would  remain  a  lieu 
tenant  until  about  the  age  of  fifty,  be  a  lieutenant-com 
mander  from  the  age  of  fifty  to  fifty-nine,  be  a  com 
mander  from  the  age  of  fifty-nine  to  sixty-one,  and  go 
through  the  grades  of  captain  and  rear-admiral  and  re 
tire  in  my  sixty-second  year. 

This  was  not  a  very  exciting  prospect;  but  I  thought 
that,  on  account  of  my  inventions  and  the  really  un 
precedented  experiences  I  had  had  in  Europe,  I  would 
probably  be  given  such  duties,  both  on  shore  and  afloat, 
that  my  inventive  ability  and  scientific  attainments, 
especially  in  electricity,  would  be  utilized  in  develop 
ing  and  perfecting  the  ordnance  and  gunnery  equip- 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     163 

ments  of  the  new  navy.  In  other  words,  it  seemed  to 
me  that,  although  I  might  never  attain  any  special 
success  as  a  naval  officer,  I  might  nevertheless  live  the 
kind  of  life  that  every  man  likes  to  live;  that  is,  the 
life  in  which  he  feels  that  he  is  doing  the  best  he  can 
with  the  one  or  five  or  ten  talents  committed  to  his  keep 
ing.  I  realized,  however,  that  this  might  be  merely  a 
dream,  and  that  the  sentiment  of  the  navy  at  that  time, 
and  especially  the  sentiment  in  the  Bureau  of  Navigation, 
of  which  the  chief  was  Commodore  Ramsay,  was  that  all 
naval  officers  were  the  same  except  in  the  matter  of  rank. 
I  knew  that  Commodore  Ramsay  was  enforcing  the  prac 
tice  of  absolute  rotation  in  office  both  at  sea  and  on 
shore,  and  that  the  individual  characteristics  of  officers 
had  little  influence  in  deciding  the  duties  to  which  he  as 
signed  them.  One  day  he  told  me  that,  in  the  matter 
of  inventing,  officers  were  all  the  same ;  and  he  stated,  as 
proof  of  this,  that  on  one  occasion,  when  he  had  been  com 
mandant  of  the  torpedo  station,  he  had  given  out  the 
problem  of  designing  a  mechanism  to  accomplish  a  cer 
tain  purpose,  and  that  the  solutions  of  the  twelve  offi 
cers  in  the  class  had  been  virtually  identical.  The  dis 
tinction  between  the  inventor  and  the  designing  engineer 
is  still  foggy  in  the  minds  of  many  people. 

Two  days  after  my  visit  to  the  Yorktown  I  received  or 
ders  to  report  for  duty  on  board  that  vessel  two  days 
later;  that  is,  on  October  6.  I  knew  that  she  was  to 
sail  for  the  Pacific,  and  so  I  had  to  do  considerable  hurry 
ing  to  get  all  my  affairs  arranged,  especially  with  the 
range-finder  company.  The  company  wanted  me  to  re 
sign,  but  was  unable  to  offer  me  any  adequate  guaranty 
for  the  future.  I  think  I  would  have  resigned,  and 
taken  the  chances,  if  my  friends  had  not  all  advised  me 
otherwise  and  if  my  health  had  been  more  assured.  As 
matters  were  as  they  were,  I  made  up  my  mind  not  to 
resign,  and  so  I  reported  on  board  the  Yorktoivn  in  due 
season.  Two  days  later  we  steamed  out  to  sea,  bound 
for  the  West  Indian  island  of  St.  Thomas,  then  a  posses- 


164     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

sion  of  Denmark,  but  now  a  possession  of  the  United 
States. 

I  found  life  on  board  the  Yorktown  a  change  from 
the  life  that  I  had  been  living  for  a  year.  There  were 
thirteen  of  us  in  the  mess :  the  executive  officer,  the  navi 
gator,  five  watch  officers,  of  whom  I  was  the  second,  a 
chief  engineer,  two  assistant  engineers,  a  doctor,  a  pay 
master  and  a  paymaster's  clerk.  We  had  our  messroom 
on  the  gun-deck,  and  our  rooms  on  the  berth-deck,  in  the 
wardroom  proper.  There  were  six  rooms  on  each  side, 
mine  being  the  third  from  forward  on  the  starboard  side. 
My  room  was  comfortable  in  its  way,  not  being  too  large 
and  not  encumbered  with  a  bureau.  My  bureau  stood  in 
the  wardroom  "country"  outside  my  door.  I  could  lie 
in  my  bunk  and  reach  out  from  it  and  draw  my  curtain 
without  inconvenience. 

We  had  a  rough  trip  down,  during  which  time  I  had 
considerable  leisure  in  which  to  plan  what  I  should  do, 
but  almost  nothing  to  do.  The  twenty-four  hours'  duty 
of  each  day  were  divided  among  the  five  watch  officers, 
so  that  each  of  us  stood  watch  on  deck  for  four  and 
four-fifths  hours  per  day.  Unless  the  weather  was  bad, 
we  had  some  kind  of  drill  from  half  past  nine  to  ten  in 
the  forenoon,  and  sometimes  setting-up  exercises  about 
five  in  the  afternoon.  As  the  ship  was  rarely  under  sail, 
and  as  the  engines  did  the  work  of  pushing  the  ship  along, 
there  was  not  much  for  an  officer  of  the  watch  to  do  except 
to  walk  back  and  forth  across  the  bridge.  In  port  he 
walked  back  and  forth  on  the  quarter-deck  instead  of  on 
the  bridge.  As  all  the  drills  were  of  a  simple  character, 
and  as  I  had  learned  them  in  previous  cruises,  I  did  not 
find  them  very  laborious  or  exciting. 

We  spent  two  days  in  St.  Thomas,  just  enough  to  lay 
in  a  supply  of  coal.  It  was  interesting  to  me  to  recall 
the  fact  that  I  had  invented  my  range-finder  there  four 
years  before,  to  recollect  how  much  had  passed  in  my 
humble  life  since  then,  and  to  realize  that  I  was  start 
ing  out  on  another  cruise  in  a  ship  much  less  interesting 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     165 

and  important  than  the  Atlanta;  so  that  professionally 
I  seemed  to  have  gone  backward  instead  of  forward  in 
the  intervening  years. 

A  hot  trip  took  us  to  Bahia,  in  Brazil,  about  which 
the  most  interesting  thing  seemed  to  be  the  continuous 
prevalence  of  yellow  fever.  We  coaled  as  rapidly  as 
we  could,  and  then  started  for  Montevideo,  in  Uruguay. 
One  night  I  was  to  have  the  mid-watch,  which  lasts  from 
midnight  to  four  A.  M.  In  anticipation  of  this,  I  turned 
in  early,  and  as  the  night  was  warm  and  the  sea  was 
smooth,  I  left  open  my  air-port,  a  small  round  window 
just  abreast  the  top  of  my  bunk,  following  a  practice 
which  was  usual  with  us  in  calm  weather.  Unfortu 
nately,  a  sudden  change  in  the  weather  took  place,  con 
sisting  mainly  of  a  violent  squall  which  '  *  picked  up ' '  the 
sea,  and  carried  away  some  of  our  sails.  I  did  not  know 
anything  about  this  until  I  was  suddenly  awakened  by 
a  cold  sea  coming  into  my  air-port,  and  almost  washing 
me  out  of  my  bunk. 

We  coaled  in  Montevideo,  replaced  the  sails  that  had 
been  carried  away  in  the  squall,  and  started  south  for 
the  Strait  of  Magellan.  We  were  bound  for  Valparaiso, 
in  Chile,  to  report  to  Captain  Schley,  then  in  command 
of  the  Baltimore,  some  of  whose  sailors  had  been  at 
tacked  by  a  mob  in  the  streets,  and  one  of  whom  had  been 
killed. 

We  anchored  off  the  eastern  entrance  to  the  Strait  of 
Magellan  one  evening,  preparatory  to  entering  the  next 
morning.  This  was  in  the  early  half  of  December;  and 
as  December  is  a  summer  month  in  the  Southern  Hemi 
sphere,  and  we  were  in  latitude  of  52  S.,  we  had  fair  day 
light  until  almost  midnight. 

The  next  morning  we  got  under  way  early,  and  steamed 
among  rocks  and  mountains  and  glaciers,  part  of  the 
time  in  snow-storms,  part  in  brilliant  sunshine,  over 
smooth,  deep  waters,  and  through  winding  channels. 
That  night  we  anchored  at  Punta  Arenas,  which  the  Eng 
lish  call  Sandy  Point,  one  name  being  a  translation  of 


166     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  other.  The  next  day  we  steamed  through  localities 
like  those  we  had  steamed  through  the  day  before,  and  just 
as  the  sun  was  setting,  we  pushed  out  into  the  immense 
Pacific.  Then  the  bow  of  the  little  Yorktown  began  to 
rise  and  fall  in  great  sweeps  as  she  met  the  enormous 
waves  which,  as  every  seaman  knows,  unceasingly  roll 
near  Cape  Pillar. 

We  did  not  have  enough  coal  to  take  us  to  Valparaiso 
with  much  to  spare.  So,  as  we  did  not  know  what  condi 
tions  we  should  have  to  meet  there,  the  captain  decided 
to  stop  at  the  port  of  Lota  and  get  coal,  Lota  being  at 
the  southern  extremity  of  Chile.  A  day's  trip  from  Lota 
took  us  to  Valparaiso,  and  in  that  beautiful  bay  we 
anchored  in  the  middle  of  one  afternoon  just  before 
Christmas.  Looking  around  us,  we  saw  a  bay  approxi 
mately  circular,  holding  many  ships,  of  which  two  were 
Chilean  battle-ships;  and  surrounding  the  bay  we  saw 
high  mountains,  some  near  and  some  far.  To  the  east 
ward,  at  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  perhaps  a  mile  from 
us,  lay  the  city,  looking  bright,  many-colored,  irregular 
and  picturesque. 

We  anchored  near  the  Baltimore,  and  that  evening 
Commander  Evans  of  the  Yorktown  dined  with  Captain 
Schley  aboard  the  Baltimore.  Six  years  and  a  half  later 
both  officers  took  part  in  the  Battle  of  Santiago. 

Conditions  in  Valparaiso  were  exceedingly  disturbed, 
a  revolution  being  in  progress  against  President  Balm- 
aceda,  and  the  navy  taking  the  part  of  the  revolutionists. 
Feeling  against  the  United  States  was  exceedingly  bit 
ter,  due  to  a  number  of  causes.  As  usual  in  such  cases, 
the  real  causes  of  trouble  had  occurred  several  years  be 
fore.  It  seemed  to  us  that  the  American  minister,  Mr. 
Patrick  Eagan,  had  not  shown  very  much  foresight  be 
fore  the  revolution  began,  and  that  he  had  committed  the 
United  States  to  an  unfortunate  policy  because  of  it. 
I  think  I  am  right  in  saying  that  during  my  career  on 
the  active  list,  it  was  the  opinion  of  most  naval  officers 
that  our  ministers  in  foreign  countries  did  not  serve 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     167 

their  Government  with  as  much  skill,  or  show  as  much 
foresight  and  understanding  about  the  people  of  the 
countries  to  which  they  were  accredited,  as  did  the  min 
isters  of  the  European  countries.  In  fact,  the  lack  of 
skill  and  knowledge  which  our  ministers  and  consuls  dis 
played  was  a  source  of  amazement  to  most  of  us  until  we 
became  accustomed  to  it. 

We  had  been  sent  to  Valparaiso  to  take  the  place  of 
the  Baltimore,  and  she  left  shortly  after  we  arrived. 
Before  she  left,  I  went  on  board  and  examined  my  range- 
finder,  and  asked  the  officers  how  it  had  behaved  itself. 
To  my  delight,  I  found  that  it  was  still  in  good  order, 
that  it  had  been  behaving  itself  commendably,  and  that 
about  two  months  before  on  the  conclusion  of  the  year's 
test,  the  board  had  sent  in  a  favorable  report,  which  had 
been  approved  by  the  captain. 

The  report  was  very  complete,  and  described  care 
fully  the  way  in  which  the  instrument  was  installed,  and 
the  tests  which  had  been  held  with  it  both  at  sea  and  in 
port.  One  paragraph  in  the  report  read, 

On  January  14th  last,  the  range  finder  was  used  at  target 
practice  off  the  harbor  of  Villefranche,  France.  There  was  a 
gentle  breeze,  and  the  ship  was  rolling  slightly.  The  range  of 
the  target  varied  from  1400  to  850  yards,  and  the  sight  bars  were 
set  for  the  ranges  given.  A  few  ranges  were  taken  by  Buckner  's 
method  from  the  top,  which  agreed  closely  to  those  given  by 
the  range  finder.  The  instrument  seemed  to  give  correct  re 
sults,  as  the  plotted  shots  were  evenly  distributed  above  and 
below  the  water-line  of  the  target.  Two  targets  were  shot  away ; 
and  afterwards  the  planks  and  barrels  floating  in  the  water  were 
repeatedly  struck  by  shells  from  the  secondary  battery. 

In  Captain  Schley's  endorsement  were  the  following 
sentences : 

From  my  observations  with  the  instrument  on  board  this  vessel, 
I  am  convinced  that  it  is  an  indispensable  part  of  the  ordnance 
outfit  of  all  our  news  ships.  .  .  .  During  the  cruise  in  all  target 
practices,  this  instrument  has  been  found  of  the  greatest  value 


168     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAE-ADMIRAL 

in  accurately  determining  distances.  .  .  .  The  experience  of  this 
ship  with  the  instrument  shows  further  that  the  ships,  in  con 
tests  of  the  future,  supplied  with  the  Fiske  range  finder,  would 
possess  an  enormous  advantage  over  those  in  which  the  distance 
had  to  be  determined  in  the  old  way. 

We  remained  in  Valparaiso  till  about  the  first  of 
February.  The  Chileans  were  so  hostile  to  us  that  the 
enlisted  men  were  not  allowed  ashore  at  all,  and  the 
officers  were  allowed  ashore  only  in  the  afternoon.  The 
Chilean  naval  officers,  however,  were  extremely  polite 
to  me  individually  on  account  of  my  range-finder,  which 
they  had  heard  about,  and  which  they  knew  was  to  be 
installed  in  their  new  battle-ship  Captain  Prat,  then  build 
ing  at  La  Seyne,  in  France.  In  fact,  on  almost  the  day 
that  we  arrived  the  Chilean  naval  magazine,  called  Re- 
vista  de  Marina,  published  an  illustrated  description  of 
"El  Telemetro  Fiske,"  translated  from  the  Italian. 

The  weather  was  magnficent,  day  after  day  of  bright 
sunshine  and  clear,  cool,  bracing1  air.  Finally,  after 
suitable  arrangements  had  been  made  between  the 
American  minister  and  Captain  Evans,  the  asilados  who 
had  been  members  of  the  Balmaceda  cabinet,  and  who 
had  been  given  asylum  at  the  American  Legation,  were 
brought  down  from  Santiago,  the  capital,  by  night,  and 
brought  in  a  boat  to  the  Yorktown.  The  assumption  was 
that  this  was  done  without  the  knowledge  of  the  Chilean 
Government. 

A  two  days'  trip  took  us  to  Callao,  the  seaport  of 
Peru,  about  five  miles  distant  from  Lima,  its  capital.  On 
the  morning  of  the  second  day  from  Valparaiso  we  found 
ourselves  in  a  dense  fog.  The  asilados  had  seemed  to  us 
to  be  a  little  suspicious  as  to  the  place  to  which  they 
were  to  be  taken,  and  we  could  hardly  blame  them;  for 
they  were  wholly  in  our  power,  and  they  had  no  real 
knowledge  as  to  our  relations  with  the  Chilean  Govern 
ment.  In  the  forenoon  of  the  second  day  they  were 
specially  restless ;  but  finally  when  the  fog  lifted  a  little, 
and  the  lighthouse  of  Callao  suddenly  appeared,  they 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     169 

exclaimed,  "El  pharo!  El  pharo!"  and  danced  about 
the  deck  with  joy. 

Callao  was  not  very  interesting,  but  Lima  was,  at 
least  for  a  while.  Although  Lima  is  only  twelve  de 
grees  south  of  the  equator,  and  although  the  interior  of 
Peru  near  by  is  intensely  hot,  the  climate  of  this  locality 
is,  in  a  sense,  delightful.  This  is  because  a  cold  cur 
rent  from  the  south  flows  near  the  coast  of  Peru  on  its 
way  north,  and  cools  the  climate  remarkably.  I  remem 
ber  standing  on  the  deck  of  the  Yorktown  one  day  at  noon, 
when  the  sun  was  so  nearly  vertically  above  me  that  I 
could  not  see  my  shadow  on  deck;  and  yet  I  was  very 
comfortable,  though  I  was  dressed  in  blue  uniform  and 
wore  a  blue  cap.  The  sun  rises  at  six  o  'clock  every  morn 
ing  and  sets  at  six  every  evening,  or  within  a  few  min 
utes  either  side  of  six;  the  wind  never  blows  hard;  the 
weather  is  never  hot;  the  weather  is  never  cold;  and  it 
almost  never  rains.  If  a  man  is  rich,  he  is  apt  to  own  an 
umbrella  and  a  light  overcoat,  but  these  are  largely  for 
display.  The  absence  of  rain,  however,  is  compensated 
by  a  continuous  dampness  in  the  air,  which  in  Callao  fre 
quently  becomes  a  fog.  The  result  is  that  one  day  in 
Lima  is  almost  exactly  like  every  other  day.  The  sun 
shine  is  never  bright,  but  it  is  seldom  hidden  altogether ; 
so  that  a  continuous  light  haze  pervades  Lima  all  the 
while  in  daytime,  and  gives  a  soft  effect  to  a  landscape, 
which  is  therefore  never  brilliant  but  never  gloomy.  I 
have  been  in  Lima  several  times  since,  and  on  the  way 
there  I  have  always  predicted  to  my  companion  what 
would  be  the  general  appearance  of  the  plaza  when  we 
reached  it,  and  my  predictions  have  always  been  veri 
fied. 

Shortly  after  joining  the  wardroom  mess,  some  one, 
by  reason  of  my  recent  sojourn  in  France,  dubbed  me 
Algernon  de  Montmorenci,  a  name  which  soon  became 
Algy,  and  by  which  I  was  known  in  the  mess  during  the 
rest  of  the  cruise.  The  telescope  sight  was  known  as 
"Algy's  sight,"  and  it  was  an  object  of  good-natured 


170     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

and  kindly  disregard.  The  subject  was  rarely  mentioned 
except  in  good-natured  bantering;  but  one  day  at  the 
midday  meal  an  argument  arose,  which  brought  out  the 
fact  that  every  member  of  the  mess  regarded  the  sight  as 
not  only  unpractical,  but  incorrect  in  principle.  I  was 
not  able  to  make  a  single  man  in  the  mess  admit  the  cor 
rectness  of  the  theory  upon  which  I  had  constructed  it, 
and  I  went  down  to  my  room  with  a  horrible  suspicion 
in  my  mind,  a  doubt  of  my  own  sanity.  I  said  to  my 
self  that,  if  I  had  held  persistently  to  a  certain  theory 
on  a  demonstrable  subject  for  a  year  and  a  half,  and  that 
theory  was  wrong,  I  must  be  crazy. 

Just  then  I  remembered  that  there  was  an  officer  on 
board  the  U.  S.  S.  Boston,  anchored  near  us,  who  had 
had  some  experience  in  ordnance,  and  I  determined  to  go 
at  once  and  call  on  him,  and  see  if  I  could  not  bring  him 
to  my  point  of  view,  resolving  that  if  he  declared  that 
I  was  wrong,  I  would  then  believe  so.  This  officer  was 
Lieutenant  Albert  Gleaves,  now  a  vice-admiral. 

So  I  got  a  boat  and  went  on  board  the  Boston.  I  dis 
covered  Gleaves  half  asleep  in  his  bunk,  having  had  a 
watch  the  night  before.  I  found  him  very  good  natured 
and  perfectly  willing  to  talk  about  the  telescope  sight, 
though  he  frankly  told  me  that  he  thought  that  I  was 
wrong. 

After  some  discussion  and  drawing  of  diagrams,  we 
went  up  to  the  six-inch  gun  on  the  port  side  of  the  gun- 
deck  aft.  Here  I  labored  with  Gleaves  for  a  long  while 
without  success ;  but  finally  he  drew  back  and  said  almost 
under  his  breath  and  very  gravely  indeed: 

"By  God!  Jim,  I  believe  you  're  right." 

We  remained  at  Callao  for  about  ten  days,  and  then 
started  north  for  San  Francisco.  Shortly  after  leaving 
Callao,  the  ship  held  her  regular  target  practice.  After 
this  target  practice  was  over,  but  before  the  battery  was 
secured,  I  asked  permission  of  the  captain  to  try  the 
telescope  sight,  knowing  that  he  had  orders  from  the 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     171 

Bureau  of  Ordnance  to  try  it.  The  captain  seemed  con 
siderably  irritated,  but  he  gave  permission  saying: 

"All  right;  but  hurry  up  about  it." 

The  telescope  sight  was  fitted  to  a  gun  in  my  division, 
but  it  was  not  just  then  in  place.  So  I  sent  the  gunner's 
mate  to  get  it,  and  in  a  few  minutes  I  had  it  secured  in 
position.  Then  the  gun  captain  fired  four  shots  at  the 
target.  To  my  horror,  they  all  went  about  four  hundred 
yards  short !  I  tried  to  explain  to  the  captain  that,  since 
they  all  went  to  the  same  spot,  the  sight  must  be  all  right, 
but  that  I  must  have  failed  to  get  the  zero  adjustment 
right ;  and  I  pointed  out  that  to  get  this  adjustment  right 
was  an  extremely  difficult  thing  to  accomplish  at  sea,  with 
a  vessel  that  rolled  as  much  as  the  Yorktown.  I  could 
not  make  him  see  the  matter  as  I  did,  however ;  but  yield 
ing  somewhat  to  my  insistence,  he  called  out,  "Mr. 

X ,  look  through  that  telescopic  sight  and  tell  me 

what  you  think  about  it."  X—  -  went  to  the  telescope 
and  had  the  gun  moved  about  while  he  looked  through 
the  telescope.  Then  he  turned  to  the  captain,  saluted, 
and  said: 

"I  think  it  increases  the  difficulty  of  sighting,  sir." 

So  I  went  down  to  my  room  with  a  feeling  of  discour 
agement  so  intense  that  I  needed  to  remind  myself  con 
tinually  that  Folger  and  Gleaves  were  on  my  side. 

This  story  may  seem  queer  to  officers  now  who  are 
familiar  with  "bore-sighting,"  but  the  fact  is  that  all 
the  officers  of  the  Yorktown  agreed  with  the  captain. 
Shortly  afterward,  the  captain  sent  in  the  following  re 
port: 

U.  S.  S.  Yorktown,  3d  Rate, 
Navy  Yard,  Mare  Island,  March  31,  1892. 
The  Honorable  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Sir : — I  have  the  honor  to  report,  that  during  the  target  prac 
tice,  for  this  quarter,  I  tested  the  Fiske  telescopic  sight  under 
the  personal  supervision  of  the  inventor. 

The  sight  was  fitted  to  the  forward  6-inch  B.  L.  R.  and  the  gun 


172     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

captains,  who  had  been  doing  excellent  shooting,  with  the  ordi 
nary  sights,  were  required  to  use  it.     The  shooting  immediately 
became  so  bad  that  the  use  of  the  sight  was  discontinued,  the 
inventor  admitting  that  something  was  radically  wrong  with  it. 
Afterwards,  I  required  the  executive  officer  to  observe  the 
target  through  the  Fiske  sight,  when  the  gun  was  fired  with  the 
ordinary  sights.     He  reported  that  the  target  was  not  anywhere 
near  the  cross  wires  when  the  gun  was  fired;  yet  the  shot  was 
an  excellent  one.     He  was  cut  over  the  eye  by  the  recoil  of  the 
sight.     The  shots  fired  with  this  sight  are  marked  on  the  returns. 
In  its  present  shape  it  is  of  no  value  on  board  ship. 
Very  respectfully, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

ROBLEY  D.  EVANS, 
Commander  Commanding. 

On  reaching  San  Francisco  Bay,  we  went  directly  to 
the  navy-yard,  which  is  about  forty  miles  from  San 
Francisco.  Hardly  had  we  reached  the  navy-yard  when 
we  received  orders  to  prepare  with  all  possible  despatch 
to  go  to  the  Bering  Sea.  After  our  long  trip  from 
New  York,  we  had  been  looking  forward  with  great  pleas 
ure  to  reaching  the  yard;  but  in  one  day  after  arriving 
the  conditions  at  the  yard  became  more  uncomfortable 
than  at  sea.  Navy-yard  workmen  came  on  board  in  large 
numbers,  and  ripped  up  decks,  and  drove  rivets,  and 
hammered  oakum  into  the  seams,  at  a  rate  which  was 
extremely  trying  to  the  temper  and  the  ears;  and  we 
could  not  get  away  from  the  ship  on  leave,  because  our 
presence  was  required  on  board,  to  see  that  the  repairs 
were  done  correctly,  each  watch  officer  being  responsible 
for  a  certain  part  of  the  ship. 

Finally  we  got  away,  and  a  pleasant,  but  somewhat 
rough,  trip  took  us  to  the  Straits  of  San  Juan  de  Fuca, 
at  the  northwestern  corner  of  the  United  States.  A  de 
lightful  and  exhilarating  passage  through  those  straits, 
between  tremendous  pine-forests,  backed  with  tremen 
dous  mountains  on  both  sides,  took  us  to  Port  Townsend, 
in  the  State  of  Washington.  Here  we  laid  in  coal  to 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     173 

take  us  to  Unalaska,  one  of  the  islands  of  the  Aleutian 
chain,  which  form  the  southern  boundary  of  the  Bering 
Sea.  Port  Townsend  was  one  of  the  too-much-boomed 
"Western  towns.  It  had  had  a  brief  period  of  inflated 
prosperity;  but  now  the  inhabitants,  despite  some  new 
fine  buildings  on  the  streets,  were  gloomy  and  discour 
aged. 

A  trip  of  a  few  days  brought  us  to  Unalaska,  which 
presented  to  our  view  on  the  morning  of  the  first  of 
May  a  rough  and  forbidding  picture  of  low,  but  rugged, 
mountains,  sharp  peaks,  and  a  few  houses  along  a  sandy 
beach,  the  whole  still  covered  with  the  winter 's  snow. 

We  had  been  sent  to  the  Bering  Sea  to  take  part  in  a 
concerted  effort  made  by  several  nations  to  prevent  the 
wholesale  destruction  of  seals.  We  learned  that  the 
seals  congregated  on  the  " rookeries"  on  the  Pribyloff 
Islands,  in  the  middle  of  the  Bering  Sea,  in  the  summer 
time  ;  that  they  left  about  the  first  of  October,  the  females 
going  south  and  the  males  going  to  unknown  parts ;  and 
that  about  the  first  of  the  following  May  the  females  re 
appeared,  coming  with  their  young  from  the  South, 
while  the  males  reappeared  at  the  same  time,  coming  from 
no  one  knew  where. 

The  Yorktown  was  the  flag-ship  of  a  little  fleet,  of  I 
think,  six  vessels,  of  which  three  were  naval  vessels  and 
three  were  revenue-cutters. 

During  the  five  months  that  we  were  in  the  Bering  Sea 
each  vessel  spent  about  half  the  time  in  port  and  half 
the  time  at  sea.  Life  at  sea  was  not  very  luxurious,  be 
cause  the  weather  consisted  for  the  most  part  of  gales 
and  fogs ;  and  sometimes  a  gale  and  fog  co-existed.  We 
steamed  back  and  forth  across  the  Bering  Sea,  but  we 
rarely  found  any  sealers,  largely  because  there  were  very 
few  sealers  to  be  found.  One  day  we  had  a  gale  that  I 
shall  always  remember  from  the  fact  that  everybody  on 
board  was  seasick.  It  was  then  ten  months  since  we  had 
left  New  York,  and  we  had  enough  rough  weather  to 
have  become  accustomed  to  it;  but  there  was  something 


174     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

so  particularly  disturbing  about  this  gale  that  even  sail 
ors  who  had  been  going  to  sea  since  boyhood,  and  who 
had  never  had  any  other  occupation  in  their  lives,  were 
seasick. 

We  would  usually  go  to  sea  for  a  week,  and  then  lie  in 
port  for  a  week.  The  port  of  Unalaska  did  not  offer  any 
bewildering  attractions,  but  we  always  left  it  with  regret 
and  returned  to  it  with  pleasure.  During  a  week's  trip, 
we  watch  officers  would  walk  up  and  down  the  bridge 
for  four  hours,  and  look  at  as  much  water  as  we  could 
see  through  the  fog  and  very  frequently  the  rain.  When 
we  came  off  watch,  we  would  sit  in  the  mess-room  or  lie 
down  in  our  bunks.  One  afternoon,  after  I  had  been  ly 
ing  in  my  bunk,  I  got  up  from  it  about  a  quarter  before 
four  to  go  on  watch.  I  looked  across  the  wardroom,  and 
saw  the  surgeon,  a  big  man,  standing  in  his  room,  holding 
on  to  the  right  and  left  sides  of  his  bureau,  so  as  to  steady 
himself  in  the  violent  rolling  of  the  ship,  sobbing  audibly, 
with  tears  running  down  both  cheeks,  which  he  could 
not  wipe  off,  because  he  was  using  both  his  hands  to  hold 
on  to  the  bureau.  Wondering  what  could  have  happened 
to  him,  I  went  over  to  his  room  and  sympathetically  in 
quired.  The  surgeon  told  me  as  best  he  could,  his  voice 
being  choked  by  sobs  and  tears,  that  he  was  reading  Loti's 
"Pecheur  d'Islande." 

I  can  see  him  now  in  his  little  room,  with  the  sunshine 
from  the  low  western  sun  streaming  into  the  round  port 
hole  of  his  room  at  intervals  as  the  Yorktown  rolled,  and 
illuminating  a  man  whose  body  was  in  the  Bering  Sea, 
but  whose  mind  was  with  a  bereaved  and  desolate  girl 
in  France. 

One  evening,  about  nine  o'clock,  while  I  was  officer 
of  the  deck,  and  the  ship  was  driving  along  in  a  dense 
fog  and  a  howling  gale  of  wind,  and  rolling  violently,  I 
was  suddenly  startled  by  a  prolonged  screech  from  the 
siren.  This  was  the  collision  signal,  which  called  every 
body  on  deck  except  those  stationed  to  take  care  of  the 
engines  and  close  the  water-tight  doors  below.  As  a  col- 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     175 

lision  in  those  circumstances  would  have  been  a  disas 
trous  occurrence,  officers  and  men  came  on  deck  and  went 
to  their  stations  with  alacrity.  My  alarm  was  only  mo 
mentary,  because  I  realized  at  once  that,  if  the  signal  had 
been  given  because  of  an  impending  collision,  I  would 
have  been  the  one  to  give  it;  and  I  concluded  that  the 
captain  or  the  executive  officer  must  have  had  the  signal 
given,  for  some  reason,  without  my  knowledge.  But  it 
struck  me  as  curious  that  the  screeching  continued.  Soon 
the  captain's  orderly  came  running  up,  and  asked  me 
what  was  the  matter.  I  told  him  to  tell  the  captain  that 
I  did  not  know,  but  that  I  would  find  out.  It  was  in 
tensely  dark;  but  by  the  light  of  some  lanterns,  brought 
into  use  near  the  siren,  I  found  that  a  large  block,  or 
pulley,  had  been  jerked  by  the  violent  rolling  of  the  ship 
off  the  wire  on  which  it  usually  hung,  and  that  in  falling 
its  hook  had  fallen  over  the  line  which  ran  from  the  siren 
over  to  the  bridge. 

One  day  we  went  to  the  Pribyloff  Islands  to  see  the 
seal  rookeries,  having  on  board  a  Mr.  Stanley  Brown,  who 
had  come  from  Washington  to  go  up  to  them  in  the 
Torktown.  If  anybody  wants  to  live  in  the  Pribyloff 
Islands,  his  tastes  are  different  from  those  of  the  officers 
of  the  Yorktown.  The  seal  rookeries,  however,  were  in 
tensely  interesting.  Lying  on  our  bellies  on  a  cliff,  we 
could  look  along  a  low,  sandy  beach  for  miles,  the  beach 
extending  inward  from  the  seashore  a  few  hundred  yards. 
Over  this  long  and  narrow  stretch  were  congregated  tens 
of  thousands  of  seals.  They  were  divided  into  families 
evidently,  each  family  having  its  own  yard  or  space.  I 
do  not  remember  any  visible  divisions  in  the  way  of  walls 
or  ditches  that  separated  one  space  from  another,  but 
they  were  understood,  nevertheless.  Even  the  most 
superficial  survey  showed  that ;  and  it  also  showed  fights 
going  on  from  time  to  time  as  a  male  or  a  female  would 
go  across  a  division  into  another  family.  It  was  notice 
able  that  there  was  a  good  deal  of  this  visiting  and  con 
sequent  fighting  going  on;  and  it  was  also  noticeable 


176     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

that  the  seals  kissed  one  another.  Previous  to  this,  we 
had  supposed  that  human  beings  were  the  only  animals 
that  kissed  one  another.  Another  noticeable  fact  was 
the  great  difference  in  size  and  appearance  between  the 
males  and  females.  Among  most  animals,  there  is  a 
strong  resemblance  between  the  two  sexes;  but  the  male 
seal  is  not  only  much  larger  than  the  female,  but  of  very 
different  shape. 

The  port  of  Unalaska  was  situated  on  an  island  of 
the  same  name,  and  the  houses  of  the  town  were  at  that 
time  located  on  one  street  that  ran  along  the  beach.  The 
front  door  of  the  house  was  at  the  back;  that  is,  on  the 
side  opposite  from  the  street.  The  reason  for  this  was 
that  this  arrangement  gave  better  protection  inside  the 
houses  from  the  strong  gales  that  blew  from  the  sea. 
At  the  time  of  our  visit  there  were  said  to  be  about  three 
hundred  white  people  there,  Russians,  French,  English, 
Jews,  Germans,  and  Americans.  The  seal  industry,  most 
of  which  was  in  charge  of  the  Alaska  Fur  Trading  Com 
pany,  was  the  reason  for  the  white  people  being  there. 

One  evening  they  gave  us  a  ball  in  a  room  that  was 
too  small  for  the  company  collected,  and  which  was 
lighted  by  oil-lamps.  I  remember  how  hot  it  was  and 
how  hot  it  smelt.  We  all  danced,  of  course,  including 
our  executive  officer,  Lieutenant  Duncan  Kennedy,  a 
man  about  forty-four  years  old,  handsome,  and  a  good 
dancer.  He  told  us  the  next  day  at  lunch  that  he  had 
received  the  night  before  his  first  intimation  that  he 
was  getting  old  by  a  remark  from  a  lady  with  whom  he 
had  danced:  ''Some  of  these  stout  elderly  gentlemen 
are  very  light  on  their  feet." 

On  the  twenty-second  of  September,  1892,  while  near 
Unalaska,  the  Yorktown  held  her  semiannual  target  prac 
tice,  six  months  after  the  target  practice  in  which  my  tele 
scope  sight  had  been  tried  with  such  unsatisfactory  re 
sults.  After  that  target  practice,  and  knowing  that  the 
captain  had  sent  in  an  unfavorable  report,  I  had  written 
an  official  letter  to  the  chief  of  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  Com- 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     177 

mander  Folger,  saying  that  I  was  very  sure  that  the  bad 
results  had  been  entirely  due  to  my  putting  the  instru 
ment  incorrectly  in  place  when  in  a  hurry,  and  asking  an 
allowance  of  ten  more  shots  and  a  further  trial.  I  re 
ceived  a  favorable  reply,  and  the  captain  received  an 
order  to  try  the  sight  again. 

So  on  the  afternoon  of  September  22,  1892,  after  the 
usual  target  practice,  I  obtained  permission  to  fire  five 
shots,  using  the  telescope  sight. 

It  had  not  been  altered  in  any  respect  whatever  since 
it  had  been  tried  in  the  preceding  spring. 

In  the  forenoon  eighteen  shots  had  been  fired,  using  the 
regular  open  sights  then  used  in  all  navies,  six  shots  from 
each  of  the  three  guns  on  the  starboard  side.  The  results 
obtained  were  such  as  were  usually  obtained  in  such  cir 
cumstances.  We  had  a  method  then  by  which  the  spot 
where  each  shot  fell  could  be  plotted  and  recorded,  and 
shown  afterward  on  a  printed  form  issued  by  the  Bureau 
of  Ordnance. 

My  trial  was  to  come  after  the  midday  dinner.  Of 
course  I  was  intensely  excited.  No  one  else  was.  The 
captain  went  ashore,  and  none  of  the  officers  came  on 
deck  to  see  what  would  happen.  The  enlisted  men  did, 
however,  and  it  seemed  to  me  that  they  felt  sympathetic. 
My  first  shot  seemed  to  go  right  through  the  target,  near 
the  bottom;  my  .second  to  go  through  it  near  the  top;  and 
the  third  to  hit  it  at  the  bottom.  The  fourth  shot  brought 
the  target  down  in  a  heap.  When  this  thing  happened, 
three  spontaneous  cheers  from  the  men  brought  all  the 
officers  on  deck.  Then  I  fired  the  fifth  shot  at  the  wreck. 

When  my  shots  were  plotted,  it  was  seen  that  only  one 
shot,  and  that  the  last  one,  was  as  far  away  as  ten  feet 
from  the  center  of  the  target.  My  shots,  as  compared 
with  the  eighteen  shots  fired  with  the  open  sights,  were 
so  much  better  that  there  was  absolutely  no  way  of  com 
paring  them,  because  they  were  not  in  the  same  class. 
As  I  went  down  to  my  room  and  closed  the  curtain  I  re 
peated  to  myself  what  Folger  had  said  to  me,  "You  have 


178     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

changed  naval  gunnery  from  a  game  of  chance  into  a  sci 
ence";  and  /  realized  that  I  had  made  and  developed  an 
invention  the  results  of  which  would  extend  all  over  the 
world  and  reach  far  into  the  future. 

Surprise  has  been  expressed  that  the  accuracy  was  so 
great ;  but  there  is  no  reason  whatever  why  the  accuracy 
should  not  have  been  so  great,  and  there  are  two  conclu 
sive  reasons  why  it  should  have  been : 

(1)  The  telescope  sight  in  the  Yorktown  was  as  accu 
rate  and  reliable  as  any  that  have  been  made  since. 

(2)  I  was  careful  not  to  fire  except  when  the  cross 
wires  rested  on  the  center  of  the  target. 

A  few  days  later,  moving  target  practice  was  held. 
Nine  shots  were  fired  using  the  open  sights,  and  the  tenth 
shot  was  fired  using  the  telescope  sight. 

I  then  made  the  following  report  to  the  Bureau  of 
Ordnance : 

U.  S.  S.  Yorktown, 

Unalaska,  Alaska,  September  29,  1892. 

Commander  William  M.  Folger,  U.  S.  Navy,  Chief  of  Bureau  of 
Ordnance. 

Sir : — Referring  to  the  allowance  of  ten  rounds  of  6"  ammuni 
tion,  kindly  made  me  by  the  bureau,  I  beg  to  state  that  I  have 
been  able  to  fire  six  of  these ;  five  at  stationary  practice  and  one 
at  moving  practice.  The  telescope  was  mounted  on  the  shield, 
and  I  used  electric  primers. 

I  send  herewith  diagrams  showing  the  results. 

At  the  stationary  practice,  shot  No.  22  carried  away  the  target, 
and  shot  No.  23  was  fired  at  the  wreck. 

At  the  moving  practice  shot  No.  7,  fired  using  the  ordinary 
gun  sights,  carried  away  the  target,  and  shot  No.  10,  using  the 
telescope  sight,  was  fired  at  the  wreck.  As  nearly  as  could  be 
determined,  this  shot  would  have  struck  the  target,  had  the  target 
been  there,  on  the  left  side  2y2  feet  above  the  water-line.  After 
firing  this  shot  I  remarked  to  the  commanding  officer  that  the 
wreck  was  hard  to  see,  and  he  discontinued  the  practice;  the 
weather  was  now  becoming  bad. 

I  found  no  difficulty  in  directing  the  gun  on  the  target,  at 
either  stationary  or  moving  practice,  using  the  telescope  sight. 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     179 

I  found  that  any  change  in  setting,  necessitated  by  a  change 
in  range,  can  be  more  quickly  and  safely  made  than  with  the 
ordinary  sights,  where  a  man  has  to  step  up  to  the  breech  of 
the  gun.  At  the  recent  practice,  a  man  who  had  adjusted  one 
of  the  ordinary  sights  was  hurt,  because  the  gun  was  fired  be 
fore  he  had  gotten  clear  of  the  breech. 

I  found  no  inconvenience  arising  from  the  proximity  of  the 
eye  to  the  eye  piece  of  the  telescope  at  the  instant  of  discharge ; 
but  as  a  matter  of  precaution,  I  held  the  eye  piece  by  the  thumb 
and  forefinger  of  my  left  hand,  and  rested  my  eye  against  my 
thumb  and  forefinger,  instead  of  directly  against  the  eye  piece. 
I  found  no  inconvenience  in  thus  holding  the  telescope. 

Targets  are  frequently  struck,  when  the  ordinary  sights  are 
used;  of  course,  this  kind  of  shots  could  not  be  improved  by 
using  the  telescopic  sight  or  any  other  kind.  It  would  seem, 
however,  that  this  sight  ought  to  stop  wild  shooting  altogether; 
because  the  cross  wires  show  the  gun  captain  exactly  how  the 
gun  points,  and  also  magnify  by  4  the  distance  by  which  the 
gun  is  oif  the  target  at  any  instant.  This  sight  seems  to  elim 
inate  those  errors  of  naval  gunnery  that  are  due  to  inaccurate 
sighting;  if  a  man  can  see  through  a  telescope  at  all,  the  con 
struction  of  the  telescope  forces  him  to  look  along  the  axis  of 
collimation,  even  if  his  eye  is  not  accurately  placed.  That  this 
is  not  the  case  with  the  ordinary  sights,  where  a  man  must  keep 
the  pupil  of  his  eye  exactly  on  the  line  running  between  the  front 
and  rear  sights,  need  not  be  pointed  out. 

Almost  as  important  as  the  question  of  accurate  sighting  is 
the  question  of  rapid  and  convenient  sighting ;  and  it  is  apparent 
that,  if  the  field  of  view  of  the  telescopic  sight  were  small,  it 
would  be  worthless  on  a  moving  platform,  because  it  would  be 
nearly  impossible  to  keep  the  target  in  the  field  of  view,  and 
therefore  nearly  impossible  to  direct  the  gun  on  the  target. 

It  was  found  possible,  however,  by  Stackpole,  the  instrument 
maker,  to  construct  this  telescope  with  a  magnification  of  4 
(which  is  enough)  and  a  field  of  8  degrees.  This  takes  in  504 
feet  at  1200  yards,  840  feet  at  2000  yards,  1008  feet  at  2400 
yards,  etc.  It  will  be  seen  that  this  field  is  ample,  being  in  fact 
considerably  larger  than  the  field  obtained  using  the  ordinary 
sights,  and  looking  through  the  ports  in  the  gun  shield.  To  a 
man  standing  60  inches  behind  the  rear  sight,  the  total  field  is 
degrees  horizontally  and  3  degrees  vertically.  On  page  8 


180     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

are  shown  two  diagrams,  drawn  to  scale :  one  diagram  shows  how 
a  ship  looks  when  viewed  over  the  ordinary  sight,  the  other  how 
it  looks  through  the  telescopic  sight.  In  each  case,  the  ship  is 
supposed  to  be  2000  yards  distant,  to  be  300  feet  long  and  to 
have  masts  150  feet  high,  above  the  water. 

With  the  ordinary  sights,  accurate  shooting  on  the  down  roll 
is  difficult,  unless  the  sea  is  smooth ;  because,  owing  to  the  small 
field  below  the  line  of  sight,  the  target  cannot  be  seen  at  all  until 
it  is  almost  ''on";  and  it  comes  "on"  very  suddenly.  With 
the  telescopic  sight,  the  fact  that  there  is  a  field  of  4°  below  the 
cross  wires,  as  well  as  above,  makes  it  as  easy  and  accurate  to 
fire  on  the  down  roll  as  on  the  up  roll. 

By  making  one  trunnion  hollow,  and  placing  a  little  lamp  near 
it,  to  illuminate  the  .cross  wires,  as  is  done  with  some  surveying 
instruments,  a  night  sight  is  obtained  more  simple  than  those 
now  in  use. 

Should  any  accident  befall  the  telescope,  the  ordinary  sights 
can  still  be  used,  as  at  present ;  the  telescope  does  not  in  any  way 
interfere  with  the  ordinary  sights. 

Very  respectfully, 

B.  A.  FISKE, 
Lieutenant,  U.  S.  N. 

To  this  report  the  following  answer  was  received: 

Bureau  of  Ordnance,  October  19,  1892. 
Lieut.  B.  A.  Fiske,  U.S.N.,  Mare  Island  Navy  Yard,  Mare  Island, 

Cal. 

Sir:— Your  report  of  the  experimental  test  of  the  telescopic 
sight  has  been  received,  and  the  results  obtained  are  sufficiently 
promising  to  justify  further  trial. 

The  Bureau,  therefore,  requests  that  you  furnish  it  with  a 
description  of  the  sight  and  its  attachments,  and  of  the  method 
of  using  it;  also  with  the  information  as  to  through  whom  two 
sets  of  these  sights  may  be  purchased  for  trial  on  some  vessel 
at  this  station. 

Respectfully, 

WM.  M.  FOLGER, 
Chief  of  Bureau. 

I  answered  this  letter,  giving  the  information  re 
quested. 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     181 

Up  to  this  time  in  our  navy  guns  larger  than  six-pound 
ers  had  not  been  fitted  to  recoil  in  the  line  of  fire ;  but  I 
knew  that  they  would  be  after  a  while.  So,  as  soon  as  I 
had  demonstrated  the  applicability  of  my  invention  to 
guns  that  did  not  recoil  in  the  line  of  fire,  I  set  about  the 
much  easier  task  of  demonstrating  its  applicability  to 
guns  that  did  recoil  in  the  line  of  fire. 

About  the  first  of  November,  1892,  the  late  Rear- Ad 
miral  Frank  Wildes,  then  a  commander,  took  command 
of  the  Yorktown.  After  I  had  explained  my  scheme  to 
him  and  told  him  what  had  been  accomplished,  he  became 
much  interested,  and  gave  me  permission  to  shift  the 
sight  from  the  six-inch  gun  to  a  six-pounder  on  the  port 
side  of  the  quarter-deck. 

No  opportunity  to  try  the  sight  for  accuracy  presented 
itself;  but  one  afternoon  in  December,  1892,  I  fired  sev 
eral  shots  with  my  eye  at  the  telescope  sight  to  show  that 
there  was  no  danger  in  so  firing,  and  that  the  sight  itself 
would  not  be  injured. 

Our  amusements  at  Unalaska  were  of  a  simple  kind, 
and  consisted  in  going  ashore  when  the  weather  was  good 
enough,  walking  about  the  place,  and  playing  billiards 
on  the  single  table  there,  in  the  little  building  where  were 
the  offices  of  the  Alaska  Fur  Trading  Company.  One 
afternoon  when  I  was  playing  billiards  with  the  captain, 
I  made  the  best  shot  I  have  ever  seen  on  a  billiard-table. 
After  hitting  the  first  ball,  my  ball  jumped  up  on  the  rail 
of  the  table,  ran  along  the  length  of  the  rail  to  the  other 
end  of  the  table,  and  then  fell  off  and  hit  the  other  ball. 
We  did  not  have  much  to  amuse  us  in  those  days,  and  the 
captain  laughed  till  he  was  almost  sick. 

Our  orders  were  to  leave  Unalaska  on  the  first  of  Oc 
tober,  and  return  to  San  Francisco.  In  those  days  com 
munication  with  the  outside  world  lasted  from  May  until 
October,  and  then  ceased  until  the  following  May;  and  as 
the  food  supply  of  Unalaska  was  very  scanty,  it  was  nec 
essary  to  lay  in  certain  supplies,  for  instance  of  potatoes 
in  the  summer-time,  getting  them  from  the  United  States. 


182     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

The  day  before  we  left  Unalaska,  the  collector  of  the  port 
came  on  board  and  asked  to  see  the  captain.  On  being 
admitted  to  the  cabin,  he  asked  the  captain  to  please  let 
him  have  some  potatoes  from  the  ship  for  his  family  dur 
ing  the  coming  winter,  as  he  had  forgotten  to  get  any.  . 

We  started  from  Unalaska  about  six  o'clock  in  the 
morning.  As  I  was  to  have  the  forenoon  watch  from 
half  past  eight  to  half  past  twelve,  I  was  not  required  to 
be  on  deck,  and  I  did  not  turn  out  until  about  seven ;  but 
before  I  turned  out,  I  recognized  the  familiar  sound  of 
waves  falling  on  the  deck  overhead,  and  realized  that  we 
were  outside  and  in  heavy  weather.  So  I  put  on  my  rub 
ber  boots,  strapped  them  around  my  waist,  put  on  my 
oilskin  coat  and  sou'wester,  and  ascended  the  ladder  to 
the  upper  deck,  to  get  my  regular  breakfast  of  coffee  and 
oatmeal.  The  deck  had  more  water  on  it  than  I  had  ever 
seen  before,  and  I  could  see  the  tops  of  waves  over  both 
hammock-nettings  at  the  same  time.  I  realized  that  the 
sea  was  not  only  exceedingly  rough,  but  exceedingly  ir 
regular;  but  I  managed  to  eat  a  good  breakfast  never 
theless. 

After  breakfast  I  had  a  few  minutes  to  spare  before 
half  past  eight,  and  I  looked  forward  through  the  win 
dow  in  the  messroom-door  and  saw  a  very  disquieting 
panorama.  I  could  see  the  captain  on  the  bridge,  with 
the  executive  officer  on  one  side  and  the  officer  of  the 
deck  on  the  other  side,  all  holding  tightly  to  the  rail,  water 
more  than  knee-deep  on  the  deck,  and  sloshing  violently 
from  side  to  side  as  the  ship  rolled  with  a  short,  jerky 
motion.  About  two  minutes  before  half  past  eight  I 
started  forward,  hoping  that  I  should  be  able  to  reach 
the  bridge.  I  did  so ;  and  as  I  staggered  up  the  bridge- 
ladder  and  got  on  the  bridge,  a  scene  met  my  eyes  that 
at  first  sight  was  appalling.  The  waves,  instead  of  being 
regular,  as  they  usually  are  at  sea,  had  no  regularity 
whatever,  but  were  as  irregular  as  the  ebullitions  in  a  pot 
of  boiling  water.  I  saw  that  we  were  just  entering 
Unalga  Pass,  one  of  the  passages  between  the  Bering  Sea 


and  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  that  while  the  wind  was  going 
out,  the  tide  was  coming  in.  I  did  not  attempt  to  talk  to 
the  officer  whom  I  relieved,  nor  did  he  to  me.  He  simply 
pointed  ahead,  and  I  nodded;  but  he  did  not  leave  the 
bridge  until  we  had  passed  through  the  maelstrom,  so 
fascinated  was  he  with  the  scene  and  the  struggles  of 
the  Yorktown.  It  was  all  over  in  an  hour;  that  is,  the 
roughest  of  it  was.  We  then  emerged  into  an  ordinary 
gale  and  a  snow-storm  besides,  and  we  carried  the  gale 
almost  to  San  Francisco,  where  we  arrived  on  October  10 
with  very  little  coal  in  our  bunkers. 

From  San  Francisco  we  went  to  the  Mare  Island  Navy- 
Yard  to  get  ready  for  sea  again.  We  did  not  know  where 
we  were  going,  but  we  were  delighted  beyond  measure  to 
receive  orders  shortly  after  our  arrival  to  go  to  the  place 
that  we  would  rather  go  to  than  any  other  place  in  the 
world,  New  York. 

I  had  been  in  the  ship  now  a  few  days  more  than  a 
year,  and  had  not  been  out  of  it  a  single  night  or  had 
any  real  diversion.  I  had  not  even  had  a  bath  except 
such  as  I  took  every  morning,  when  the  weather  was  good 
enough,  in  a  foot-tub ;  so  I  got  permission  to  go  to  San 
Francisco. 

I  looked  forward  with  pleasure  to  twenty-four  hours 
away  from  the  ship,  away  from  discipline,  and  away  from 
the  uniform.  I  made  up  my  mind  that  I  would  go  to 
some  kind  of  show  in  the  afternoon,  get  a  fine  dinner  at 
the  Palace  Hotel,  and  go  to  the  theater  in  the  evening. 
So  I  secured  a  room  with  a  big  double  bed  and  a  private 
bath,  and  then  I  set  out  to  walk  about  the  town.  The 
first  thing  I  noticed  was  the  sign  " Painless  Dentistry." 
As  my  teeth  had  not  been  looked  at  for  more  than  a  year, 
the  idea  of  painless  dentistry  attracted  me,  and  so  I 
went  in. 

That  painless  dentist  hammered  my  teeth  and  gouged 
my  gums  and  jabbed  my  nerves  with  such  ferocity  and 
strength,  and  for  so  many  hours,  that  when  I  went  out, 
I  was  so  weak  and  nervous  that  I  fell  into  the  first  bar- 


184     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

room  I  saw,  and  took  a  drink  of  whisky.  Feeling  some 
what  revived,  I  resumed  my  walk,  and  I  soon  saw  the 
sign  " Chiropodist."  It  was  now  about  five  o'clock,  and 
as  my  left  big  toe  had  been  paining  me  a  little,  I  went  in 
to  see  the  chiropodist.  He  fussed  about  my  foot  a  few 
minutes,  and  then  gave  a  pull  with  some  kind  of  forceps 
that  tore  out  a  piece  of  my  ingrowing  toe-nail,  and  made 
me  yell  with  pain.  When  he  let  me  go,  I  had  just  about 
enough  interest  in  life  remaining  to  enable  me  to  limp 
to  the  hotel  near  by.  This  was  my  one  ''day  off"  in  the 
year. 

When  our  repairs  were  completed,  we  joined  the 
squadron  of  Rear- Admiral  Gherardi,  and  we  all  steamed 
for  New  York.  The  squadron  was  composed  of  the  Bal 
timore,  San  Francisco,  Charleston,  and  Yorktown.  We 
had  a  pleasant  trip  through  the  North  and  South  Pacific 
oceans,  the  Strait  of  Magellan  and  the  South  and  North 
Atlantic  oceans. 

The  Yorktotvn  reached  New  York  in  the  middle  of 
February,  1893.  I  had  been  in  the  ship  a  little  over  six 
teen  months,  and  had  been  out  of  it  one  night. 

I  joined  my  little  family,  living  at  the  Hotel  Beresford, 
New  York,  and  felt  that  curious,  confused  feeling  that 
one  sometimes  has  when  revisiting  familiar  scenes  and 
seeing  familiar  faces  after  a  long  absence  among  diverse 
scenes,  that  curious,  confused  feeling  of  having  been  away 
for  a  long  time,  and  yet  of  not  having  been  away  at  all. 

The  Yorktown  went  to  the  navy-yard  in  Brooklyn  for 
some  necessary  alterations  and  repairs  preparatory  to 
joining  the  fleet  at  Hampton  Roads  and  taking  part  in 
the  Columbus  Centennial  ceremonies. 

I  went  to  Washington  several  times  during  the  spring 
and  summer.  Commander  Folger  had  been  relieved  by 
Captain  Sampson  as  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance; 
but  I  found  that  Captain  Sampson  realized  as  clearly  as 
Folger  had  done  the  advisability  of  taking  up  the  ques 
tion  of  fitting  our  guns  with  telescope  sights.  I  found, 


CRUISING  IN  ATLANTIC  AND  PACIFIC     185 

in  fact,  that  he  had  put  an  officer  in  direct  charge  of  the 
matter. 

In  July,  1893,  I  was  ordered  to  the  San  Francisco,  a 
ship  much  larger  than  the  Yorktown  and  considered  to 
be  the  best  ship  in  the  navy  at  that  time.  I  was  trans 
ferred  from  the  Yorktown  on  the  insistent  request  of 
Captain  Sampson,  and  in  order  that  my  range-finder  and 
telescope  sight  and  range-indicators  already  on  board 
might  get  a  fair  test.  My  transfer  was  strongly  opposed 
by  Commodore  Ramsay,  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Navi 
gation,  who  was  managing  the  details  of  officers  accord 
ing  to  the  so-called  " block  system." 

About  this  time  I  chanced  to  see  an  announcement  in 
the  New  York  Herald  that  the  Franklin  Institute  of  the 
State  of  Pennsylvania  had  made  to  me  its  annual  award 
of  the  Elliott  Cresson  gold  medal  for  1893,  for  my  inven 
tion  of  the  electrical  range-finder.  The  medal  arrived 
in  due  time,  and  was  received  by  a  man  who  felt  very 
proud  because  of  receiving  it,  and  who  feels  so  still. 


s 


CHAPTER  XIII 

CKUISING  IN   THE    SAN    FRANCISCO.      WAB  IN   BKAZIL 

HOETLY  after  joining  the  San  Francisco  I  wrote 
the  following  letter : 


U.  S.  S.  San  Francisco, 
Boston,  Mass.,  July  25,  1893. 

Sir: — I  beg  to  state  that  I  have  a  telescopic  sight  fitted  to  a 
6-pdr.  on  board  this  ship,  and  I  would  respectfully  request  that 
a  board  of  officers  be  ordered  to  test  and  report  upon  it ;  and  also 
that  I  be  allowed  fifty  rounds  of  ammunition  for  the  purpose  of 
adjusting  and  testing  it. 

Very  respectfully, 

B.  A.  FISKE, 
Lieutenant,  U.S.N. 
The  Honorable  Secretary  of  the  Navy. 

Concerning  this  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  wrote  the 
following  letter: 

Bureau  of  Ordnance,  July  31,  1893. 

Sir: — 1.  The  bureau  requests  that  you  will  appoint  a  board  of 
officers  of  your  flagship  to  test  and  report  upon  the  telescopic 
sight  fitted  to  a  6-pdr.  on  board  the  San  Francisco.  Such  am 
munition  as  may  be  required  can  be  expended  for  these  tests. 
2.  The  attention  of  the  board  is  especially  called  to  the  pos 
sible  advantage  of  the  telescope  as  a  night  sight.  The  report 
should  contain  a  description  of  the  telescope  and  the  method  of 
using  it. 

Respectfully, 

W.  T.  SAMPSON, 
Chief  of  Bureau  of  Ordnance. 
Commander-in-Chief,  North  Atlantic  Squadron. 

In  accordance  with  this  order,  a  trial  was  held  in 
Gardiner's  Bay,  Long  Island,  in  August,  1893.  The  trial 

186 


CRUISING  IN  THE  SAN  FRANCISCO       187 

was  not  altogether  .successful,  because,  after  a  few  shots 
had  been  fired,  it  was  seen  that  the  mounting  of  the  tele 
scope  was  too  weak  to  stand  the  vibration  produced  by 
the  firing.  I  withdrew  the  instrument,  therefore,  until 
such  time  as  I  should  be  able  to  have  a  stronger  mounting 
made. 

The  excellent  report  of  the  range-finder  by  the  board 
of  officers  and  the  captain  in  the  Baltimore,  after  a  year's 
test  in  service,  induced  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  to  have 
one  installed  in  the  San  Francisco,  and  I  found  it  installed 
there  when  I  reported  on  board  for  duty.  The  bureau 
had  also  installed  a  set  of  my  range-indicators  for  sig 
naling  the  ranges  from  the  range-finders  to  the  guns. 
Captain  Sampson  had  been  captain  of  the  San  Francisco 
before  he  became  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  and 
was  therefore  much  interested  in  his  old  ship.  Although 
Captain  Sampson  was  a  scientific  man,  he  was  a  fine  sea 
man  besides,  and  had  a  very  practical  turn ;  so  that  I  had 
great  difficulty  in  persuading  him  even  to  try  my  range- 
indicator.  He  wanted  me  to  devise  instead  a  large  dial 
that  could  be  installed  aloft,  and  which  all  the  men  could 
see  from  the  deck.  I  was  finally  able  to  bring  him  to  my 
point  of  view  by  showing  that,  while  his  plan  might 
work  very  well  in  the  San  Francisco,  it  would  not  work  at 
all  in  ships  with  turrets,  and  that  it  was  high  time  that 
we  were  getting  something  ready  with  which  to  signal 
ranges  to  the  guns  in  the  turrets.  My  system  was 
adapted  to  doing  this  because  the  indicator  was  only 
about  six  inches  square,  and  required  only  two  electric 
wires  to  carry  the  necessary  electric  current  to  it. 

The  San  Francisco  made  a  short  trip  to  Boston  in 
July,  took  out  the  naval  militia  for  a  week's  cruise,  and 
then  sailed  south.  She  was  the  flag-ship  of  the  North 
Atlantic  Fleet,  and  Rear-Admiral  Benham  flew  his  two- 
starred  blue  flag  at  her  mainmasthead,  but  we  made  the 
trip  to  the  West  Indies  alone.  We  used  the  range-finder 
on  all  occasions  possible  for  ascertaining  the  distances 
of  points  on  shore,  including  the  distances  of  lighthouses 


188     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

at  night,  and  found  it  of  great  assistance  to  the  navi 
gator. 

We  expected  to  make  a  short  cruise  in  the  West  Indies, 
and  then  to  go  north  again ;  but  we  knew  that  conditions 
were  very  disturbed  in  Rio  de  Janeiro,  and  thought  it 
possible  we  might  be  ordered  there. 

One  afternoon  in  December,  when  we  were  anchored 
at  Puerto  Cabello,  in  Venezuela,  and  while  I  was  officer 
on  the  deck,  a  telegram  came  on  board  for  the  captain. 
Immediately  after,  the  captain's  bell  rang,  the  captain's 
orderly  went  in,  and  then  came  out,  and  then  went  below ; 
and  then  the  executive  officer  came  up  and  went  into  the 
cabin.  He  came  out  in  a  minute,  shaking  his  head,  and 
said  to  me,  "Make  preparations  for  sea,"  and  went  be 
low.  I  was  confident  that  this  meant  Rio,  and  it  did. 

One  of  the  vessels  in  the  harbor  was  the  Nictheroy, 
which  had  been  a  merchant  ship,  but  had  been  recently 
purchased  by  the  Brazilian  insurgents,  named  after  a 
town  opposite  Rio  de  Janeiro,  on  the  same  bay,  and  fitted 
out  with  guns  and  other  apparatus  as  a  man-of-war. 
One  of  my  range-finders  was  installed  on  board,  and  one 
forenoon  one  of  the  officers  of  the  Nictheroy  came  on 
board  to  say  he  was  having  trouble  adjusting  it,  and  to 
ask  me  what  he  should  do.  He  told  me  that  he  could  get 
one  of  the  two  telescopes  parallel,  but  could  not  get  the 
other  telescope  parallel.  Although  I  realized  how  diffi 
cult  it  was  to  get  the  other  telescope  parallel,  I  had  to  tell 
him  that  it  would  not  be  proper  for  me  as  an  officer  of 
the  United  States  Navy  to  give  any  assistance  to  a  vessel 
that  was  equipped  to  fight  against  a  government  with 
which  the  United  States  was  at  peace.  The  officer  left, 
saying  some  things  under  his  breath.  I  could  not  hear 
exactly  what  they  were,  but  they  did  not  seem  to  be  of  a 
complimentary  character. 

Our  stay  in  Rio  de  Janeiro  was  extremely  unpleasant. 
We  could  not  go  ashore  at  all ;  and  as  it  was  summer-time 
in  a  perfectly  land-locked  bay,  the  weather  was  exces 
sively  hot  and  enervating.  Yellow  fever  was  epidemic, 


CRUISING  IN  THE  SAN  FRANCISCO       189 

and  we  could  see  little  boats  with  yellow  flags  hoisted, 
conveying  sick  or  dead  persons  from  one  point  to  an 
other.  The  Brazilian  war-ships,  especially  the  Aquida- 
ban,  cruised  about  the  harbor,  and  every  evening  about 
five  o'clock  bombardments  of  those  vessels  were  started 
by  the  Brazilian  forts  on  shore.  Of  these  the  most  active 
seemed  to  be  the  fort  of  Sao  Jao.  One  afternoon  we  saw 
one  of  its  shells  fall  on  the  deck  of  one  of  the  insurgent 
ships  and  explode,  throwing  up  dark-red  fumes,  which 
we  interpreted  as  meaning  that  the  shell  was  filled  with 
cordite. 

We  could  not  tell  for  a  long  while  which  side  was  going 
to  win,  but  we  came  gradually  to  feel  that  the  insurgents 
were  not.  The  Aquidaban,  the  principal  factor  on  their 
side,  looked  as  if  she  were  in  bad  condition ;  and  we  finally 
concluded  that  it  was  only  a  matter  of  time  before  they 
would  have  to  give  up. 

The  insurgent  ships  established  a  blockade  of  the  port 
by  sheer  force;  but  as  they  were  insurgents  against  a 
government  with  which  our  government  was  at  peace,  it 
was  clear  that  they  had  no  reason  under  international 
law  to  expect  that  Admiral  Benham  would  allow  them  to 
exercise  their  unrighteous  blockade  against  any  Ameri 
can  merchant  ships  which  might  wish  to  receive  or  dis 
charge  cargo  in  the  port.  They  attempted  to  enforce  it, 
however,  and  of  course  Admiral  Benham  protested.  The 
insurgent  ships  persisted;  and  they  were  about  to  use 
force  when  Admiral  Benham  got  his  squadron  under  way, 
cleared  for  action,  and  sent  the  Detroit  under  Commander 
(now  Rear-Admiral)  W.  H.  Brownson  to  give  an  ulti 
matum  to  the  Brazilian  admiral.  The  Brazilian  saw  that 
Admiral  Benham  was  in  earnest,  and  gave  up  his  attempt. 

Of  course  Admiral  Benham  reported  his  action  to 
Washington.  According  to  international  law,  his  action 
was  correct;  but  at  the  same  time  there  was  no  exact 
precedent,  because  no  case  exactly  like  it  had  before 
arisen,  and  Admiral  Benham  showed  great  moral  courage 
in  doing  as  he  did.  We  heard  afterward  that  President 


190     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Cleveland,  on  receiving  the  despatch  from  Admiral  Ben- 
ham,  prepared  a  despatch  in  answer,  disapproving  of  his 
action,  and  telling  him  to  rescind  it.  We  heard  also  that 
this  despatch  went  to  the  Navy  Department  to  be  put  in 
the  navy  code  for  cabling  some  time  in  the  evening ;  that 
the  officer  who  did  that  work  could  not  then  be  found; 
that  the  sending  of  the  despatch  was  delayed  until  the 
following  morning;  that  on  the  following  morning  the 
newspapers  spoke  of  Admiral  Benham's  action  in  com 
mendatory  terms;  and  that  the  President  decided  then 
not  to  send  the  despatch.  I  do  not  know  absolutely  that 
the  story  is  true,  but  it  is  generally  believed  in  the  navy. 
I  have  often  heard  it  stated  as  a  fact,  and  I  have  never 
heard  it  denied  or  spoken  of  in  terms  of  doubt. 

One  evening  after  dinner  I  received  news  of  my  fa 
ther's  death.  It  was  not  unexpected,  but  I  went  up  on 
deck  and  sought  the  company  of  my  range-finder  at  the 
extreme  after  end  of  the  ship,  and  stayed  there  until  mid 
night,  looking  out  into  the  darkness  and  at  the  dim  lights 
of  the  distant  city.  I  called  before  my  memory  all  of  his 
unselfish  life  since  I  had  known  him,  and  repeated  to  my 
self  continually  that  noble  description  of  a  noble  life, 
"He  went  about  doing  good,  he  went  about  doing  good." 

Shortly  after,  a  curious  motley  squadron,  headed  by 
the  Nictheroy,  steamed  into  the  harbor  and  attacked  the 
forts.  The  forts  surrendered,  and  the  rebellion  ceased. 

Shortly  after,  to  our  great  joy,  we  were  ordered  to 
Bluefields,  in  Nicaragua.  We  knew  that  Bluefields  was 
about  as  uninteresting,  hot,  and  humid  a  place  as  one 
could  find ;  but  we  also  knew  that  we  should  be  able  to  get 
ashore  sometimes  when  there,  and  to  see  somebody  be 
sides  the  four  hundred  men  of  the  San  Francisco. 

After  we  anchored,  I  was  sent  ashore  to  the  consul  to 
get  news,  and  to  offer  him  a  passage  to  the  ship.  Of 
course  I  went  in  uniform,  and  wore  a  sword.  When  I 
entered  the  consul's  outer  office,  I  saw  him  in  his  inner 
office  with  a  rather  pretty,  rather  young  woman.  When 


CRUISING  IN  THE  SAN  FRANCISCO       191 

I  went  in,  he  introduced  me  to  this  lady,  whom  I  will  call 
Mrs.  Davis.  The  consul  said  to  me  substantially  as  fol 
lows  : 

1  'Lieutenant,  this  lady  is  the  widow  of  an  American 
gentleman  who  went  to  Honduras  and  established  a  large 
plantation  near  Cape  Gracias  a  Dios.  One  night  some 
desperadoes  attacked  the  plantation  and  killed  her  hus 
band,  cut  off  his  head  and  threw  his  body  into  the  river." 

"When  did  this  happen!"  I  asked. 

"I  do  not  know  exactly,"  answered  the  consul. 
"When  did  that  happen,  Mrs.  Davis?" 

"Oh,  let  me  see,"  said  Mrs.  Davis,  brightly.  "Why, 
is  n  't  that  funny !  It  happened  just  a  month  ago  to-day. ' ' 

On  August  17  and  December  4  we  held  target  practice 
at  sea.  The  practice  on  December  4  was  held  under  con 
ditions  of  more  than  ordinary  difficulty,  in  that  the 
weather  was  misty  and  rainy,  and  the  sea.  was  so  rough 
that  it  broke  the  target  away  from  its  moorings.  We 
had  intended  to  hold  target  practice  in  the  regulation 
way,  with  an  anchored  target;  but  I  pointed  out  to  the 
captain  that  here  was  an  opportunity  to  give  my  range- 
finder  a  real  test,  in  circumstances  simulating  battle. 
The  captain  agreed,  and  the  result  was  the  most  realistic 
target  practice  that  had  ever  been  held  in  the  navy  up 
to  that  time.  In  my  -opinion  the  target  practice  held  by 
the  San  Francisco  that  day  of  December  4,  1893,  was  a 
greater  single  step  forward  in  naval  gunnery  than  has 
ever  been  made  since.  Attention  is  therefore  requested 
to  the  following  report,  and  to  the  fact  that  it  was  signed 
by  Captain  J.  C.  "Watson,  wrho  had  been  Farragut's  flag- 
lieutenant,  and  was  about  the  most  strictly  conscientious 
man  I  have  ever  known. 

The  report  was  as  follows : 

U.  S.  Flagship  San  Francisco,  2d  Rate. 
Port  au  Spain,  Trinidad,  Dec.  19/93. 

Sir : — 1.  I  have  the  honor  to  transmit  herewith  a  record  of  cer 
tain  tests  with  the  Fiske  Range  Finder. 


192     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

2.  These  tests  show  that  the  accuracy  of  this  instrument  is 
sufficient  to  make  it  very  valuable  for  the  purposes  of  gunnery, 
and  for  many  of  the  purposes  of  navigation  along  a  coast;  and 
while  the  range  finder  is  not  so  accurate  as  cross-bearings  of  ob 
jects  whose  positions  are  exactly  known,  yet,  for  all  cases  where 
only  one  such  object  can  be  seen,  it  is  very  useful;  since  occa 
sions  often  arise  when  it  becomes  extremely  desirable  to  know 
immediately  the  distance  of  the  shore,  or  of  a  landmark,  when 
cross-bearings  cannot  be  obtained. 

3.  The  range  finder  has  been  used  at  target  practice  at  sea 
on  the  following  occasions  on  board  this  ship,  viz.;  in  the  fore 
noon  of  Aug.  17,  1893,  with  the  secondary  battery,  at  distances 
varying  from  1,200  to  1,800  yards ;  in  the  afternoon  of  the  same 
day,  with  the  main  battery,  at  distances  varying  from  1,500  to 
2,100  yards ;  in  the  forenoon  of  Dec.  4,  1893,  with  the  main  bat 
tery,  at  distances  varying  from  2,250  to  3,000  yards ;  and  in  the 
afternoon  of  the  same  day,  with  the  secondary  battery,  at  dis 
tances  varying  from  1,500  to  2,200  yards.     The  ship  was  moving 
in  all  cases,  and  there  was  more  swell  and  more  motion  than  are 
usual  at  target  practice. 

4.  On  all  of  these  occasions  the  range  finder  proved  itself  of 
great  value;  in  fact,  the  practice  would  have  been  very  unsatis 
factory  without  it,  because  the  state  of  the  wind  and  sea  and 
the  depth  of  water  were  such  that  the  target  drifted  so  much, 
that  its  distance  would  have  been  altogether  uncertain,  had  it 
not  been  for  the  indications  of  the  range  finder. 

5.  While  my  practical  experience  with  the  range  finder  has 
brought  me  to  the  conviction  that  it  is  an  instrument  of  real 
value  to  the  service,  both  for  gunnery  and  navigation,  I  beg  to 
state  that  its  usefulness  would  be  much  increased  if  the  observ 
ing  stations  were  placed  in  more  elevated  positions.     At  pres 
ent  they  are  placed  on  deck ;  and  the  lines  of  sight  through  the 
telescope   are   frequently   obstructed   by   powder  smoke,   boats, 
stanchions  and  gun  shields.     In  my  opinion  the  observing  sta 
tions  should  be  placed  well  above  the  deck  (in  the  tops,  or  on  the 
masts  or  on  elevated  platforms)  so  as  to  be  above  powder  smoke 
and  all  obstructions. 

Very  respectfully, 

J.  C.  WATSON, 

Captain,  U.  S.  Navy,  Commanding. 
The  Secretary  of  the  Navy. 


CRUISING  IN  THE  SAN  FRANCISCO       193 

A  tabulated  list  of  the  various  trials  was  inclosed,  and 
at  the  end  was  a  statement,  "Average  error  per  thousand 
yards,  .55^,"  about  half  of  one  per  cent. 

Since  the  trial  of  the  telescope  sight  in  Gardiner 's  Bay, 
Long  Island,  I  had  no  opportunity  to  have  the  sight  tried 
again;  but  on  May  7  and  8,  1894,  the  sight  was  tried  by 
a  board.  (During  the  nine  months  that  had  intervened 
no  change  whatever  had  been  made  in  the  instrument  ex 
cept  that  the  original  worm  shaft  that  moved  the  tele 
scope  in  a  vertical  plane  had  been  replaced  by  another 
somewhat  thicker.) 

The  board  made  the  following  report : 

IT.  S.  S.  San  Francisco, 
Navy  Yard,  New  York,  July  9th,  1894. 

Sir: — In  obedience  to  your  instructions,  we  have  witnessed 
target  practice  with  the  6-pounder  Hotchkiss  rapid  fire  gun  of 
the  ship,  fitted  with  a  telescopic  sight  by  Lieutenant  B.  A. 
Fiske,  U.S.N.,  and  we  report  as  follows: 

The  target  practice  was  made  on  May  7,  while  at  anchor  at 
Pearl  Cay  Lagoon,  Coast  of  Nicaragua,  and  on  May  8,  while  at 
anchor  off  Bluefields  Bluffs,  Coast  of  Nicaragua. 

On  the  first  day,  the  firing  was  done  by  twelve  persons,  officers 
and  men,  four  of  them  familiar  with  the  use  of  the  telescopic 
sight,  and  all  of  them  trained  in  pointing  and  firing  with  the 
ordinary  sight. 

On  the  second  day,  the  firing  was  done  by  eight  men,  only  one 
of  whom  had  ever  used  the  telescopic  sight ;  and  he  had  fired  but 
one  shot  with  it,  on  the  previous  day.  Two  of  these  men  had 
made  zeros  in  the  last  quarterly  target  practice,  and  one  of  them 
had  never  had  any  target  practice  with  any  sort  of  firearm. 

The  fall  of  the  shots  was  observed,  recorded  and  plotted  (Form 
A)  in  the  regular  manner;  and  the  results  of  the  practice  are 
shown  in  the  diagram  and  data  on  the  two  sheets  appended  and 
marked  A  and  B. 

It  seems  scarely  necessary  to  discuss  the  superiority  of  the 
telescopic  sight  under  conditions  which  admit  of  its  use ;  that  is 
when  the  light  is  sufficient,  and  the  lenses  are  free  from  mois 
ture,  etc. 

It  is  superior  to  the  ordinary  sights  just  as  the  telescopic  sight 


194=    FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAB-ADMIEAL 

of  a  transit  or  a  theodolite  is  superior  to  the  alidade  or  the  sight 
vanes. 

The  field  of  view  is  easily  made  as  large  as  that  for  the  ordi 
nary  Vl-inch  gun  sights,  with  the  usual  aperture  in  the  shield. 

With  the  telescopic  sight,  the  target  is  seen  clearly  with  the 
cross-hairs  apparently  resting  on  the  target  itself;  all  in  focus, 
and  with  none  of  the  uncertainty  arising  from  more  or  less  coarse 
ness  of  sight,  and  in  making  alinement  of  sights,  near  the  eye, 
with  a  distant  object  requiring  a  different  focus. 

The  operation  of  pointing  the  gun  (bringing  the  sight  on  the 
object)  is  as  easy  with  the  ordinary  sight,  and  it  is  less  fatiguing 
to  the  eye.  In  conditions  unfavorable  to  the  use  of  the  telescopic 
sight  the  ordinary  sights  are  still  available. 

The  mechanical  arrangement  of  the  mounting  of  the  telescope 
was  unsatisfactory.  The  shock  of  discharge  deranged  the  ad 
justment,  and  made  a  new  adjustment  necessary  after  each  shot. 

Lieutenant  Fiske  offers  a  new  arrangement  now,  which,  it  is 
thought,  will  avoid  the  difficulties  found  with  the  one  used  dur 
ing  the  target  practice. 

The  mechanical  details  of  the  mount  which  was  used  and  the 
new  one  proposed,  are  shown  in  the  drawing  on  the  sheet  ap 
pended  and  marked  C. 

Respectfully  submitted, 
T.  C.  MCLEAN,  Lieut.-Comdr.  U.S.N. 
AARON  WARD,  Lieutenant,  U.S.N. 
F.  W.  KELLOGG,  Lieutenant,  U.S.N. 

"The  mechanical  arrangement  of  the  mounting  of  the 
telescope,"  mentioned  in  the  third  from  the  last  para 
graph  of  the  report  of  this  board,  did  not  mean  the  mount 
ing  of  the  instrument  on  the  shoulder-piece  of  the  gun, 
but  the  means  for  elevating  and  depressing  the  telescope 
for  changes  in  the  range ;  that  is,  the  combination  of  the 
lug  under  the  telescope  with  the  end  of  the  worm  shaft 
that  carried  the  range  disk,  the  two  being  held  together 
by  a  spiral  spring. 

Every  time  the  gun  was  fired,  the  lug  would  hammer 
the  end  of  the  worm  shaft  violently  and  make  the  shaft 
revolve  in  its  bearings ;  so  that  the  range  disk  had  to  be 
revolved  back  every  time,  and  placed  at  the  correct  read- 


CRUISING  IN  THE  SAN  FRANCISCO       195 

ing.  Of  course  the  revolving  of  the  shaft  and  range  disk 
were  perfectly  apparent,  and  it  took  only  a  second  to  turn 
them  back  to  the  correct  range  indication. 

The  report  does  not  mean  that  the  telescope  sight  had 
to  be  re-bore-sighted  during  the  trials.  I  wish  to  make 
this  point  very  clear,  and  to  state  that  neither  on  board 
the  Yorktown  nor  the  San  Francisco  was  the  telescope 
sight  ever  jarred  out  of  adjustment  in  the  sense  that  it 
had  to  be  re-bore-sighted.  I  had  noticed  the  defect  in  the 
original  trials  on  board  the  Yorktown,  and  in  an  applica 
tion  for  patent,  which  I  had  made  a  year  before,  on 
May  20,  1893,  this  arrangement  was  replaced  by  a  worm 
and  worm-wheel. 

One  of  the  drawings  of  the  patent  application  is  shown 
on  page  196.  Two  of  the  "claims"  read  as  follows: 

"Claim  1.  The  combination  of  a  gun,  a  saddle  whereon  said 
gun  slides  longitudinally,  a  support  for  said  saddle  constructed 
so  as  to  allow  said  saddle  to  be  moved  in  a  vertical  plane,  and  a 
telescope  or  sight-bar  supported  upon  said  saddle  movable  on  a 
horizontal  transverse  axis,  and  disposed  with  its  longitudinal 
axis  in  a  vertical  plane  parallel  to  that  including  the  axis  of  the 
bore  of  the  gun." 

"5.  The  combination  of  a  gun,  a  support  therefor  and  a 
telescope  on  said  support,  the  said  gun  and  the  said  telescope 
being  movable  about  their  transverse  axes,  and  the  said  telescope 
being  supported  on  an  inclined  base :  whereby  the  line  of  sight  to 
a  distant  object  from  said  telescope  is  corrected  to  allow  for 
drift  of  the  projectile  thrown  from  said  gun,  substantially  as 
described. ' ' 

This  patent  is  interesting  because  it  describes  the  fun 
damental  features  of  all  the  telescope  sights  used  in  all 
the  navies  today.  In  fact  claim  5  covers  army  telescope 
sights  also. 

Finally,  to  our  intense  delight,  we  were  ordered  to  the 
navy-yard  in  New  York.  We  arrived  there  about  the 
middle  of  July  for  extensive  repairs  and  alterations. 
One  of  the  alterations  was  putting  the  forward  instru 
ment  of  the  range-finder  on  a  platform  about  three  feet 


196     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

high,  according  to  the  recommendation  of  the  captain. 

During  all  the  trip  of  the  San  Francisco  since  leaving 

New  York,  about  a  year  before,  my  range-indicators  had 

been  tried  as  well  as  the  range-finder.     The  year's  test 


Telescope  Sight. 
U.  S.  Patent  No.  558,058.     Dated  April  14,  1896. 

being  now  virtually  completed,  the  captain  sent  in  the 
following  report,  which  included  both  the  range-finder 
and  the  range-indicators. 

U.  S.  Flagship  San  Francisco,  2d  Rate, 
Navy  Yard,  New  York,  July  19,  1894. 

Sir: — 1.  I  have  the  honor  to  report  that  the  Fiske  Range 
Finder  and  Range  Indicators,  which  were  received  on  board  this 
ship  Aug.  10,  1893,  have,  during  the  intervening  year,  fulfilled 
satisfactorily  the  purposes  for  which  they  were  intended. 

2.  In  January  last,  when  at  Pernambuco,  Brazil,  I  sent  to  the 
Department  a  tabulated  record  of  the  errors  of  the  Range  Finder, 
as  determined  in  the  various  ports,  where  the  true  distances 
could  be  gotten  from  the  charts.     The  Average  error  of  all  the 
observations  was  about  6/10  of  1  per  cent,  per  1000  yards.     Since 
that  time,  I  have  always  made  use  of  the  Range  Finder  at  target 
practice,  and  in  going  into  and  out  of  port  and  in  coasting. 

3.  The  Range  Finder  is  thoroughly  adapted  to  ship  use,  as  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  its  whole  care  and  service  are  in  the  hands 
of  three  apprentice  boys.     These  boys  keep  it  in  order,  and  go 
to  it,  as  their  station,  at  general  quarters,  getting  under  way  and 
anchoring,  and  whenever  the  word  is  passed  "Man  the  Range 
Finder." 


CRUISING  IN  THE  SAN  FRANCISCO       197 

4.  The  Range  Indicators  keep  in  order  with  almost  no  care 
whatever.  There  is  a  transmitter  in  the  conning  tower,  one  read 
ing  instrument  in  the  starboard  gangway,  another  reading  in 
strument  on  the  poop.  The  quiet  and  orderliness  of  target 
practice  would  be  much  increased  if  two  reading  instruments 
were  added — one  for  the  port  gangway  and  one  for  the  fore 
castle. 

Very  respectfully, 

J.  C.  WATSON, 
Captain  U.  S.  Navy,  Commanding. 

We  remained  alongside  the  dock  until  I  was  detached 
on  the  first  of  October,  1894.  At  the  time  I  left,  the  work 
on  the  platform  of  the  range-finder  was  not  quite  ready ; 
but  I  went  to  the  navy-yard  two  or  three  times  to  see  that, 
when  the  forward  range-finder  instrument  was  put  back 
on  the  platform,  it  would  be  put  back  correctly,  and  espe 
cially  that  two  wires  which  went  from  it  to  the  after 
instrument  should  be  put  in  their  correct  places.  If  the 
ends  of  each  wire  were  put  where  the  ends  of  the  other 
wire  ought  to  be,  the  instrument  would  not  function. 
Finally,  I  received  word  that  the  instrument  was  all  ready 
for  me  to  inspect,  and  see  if  it  was  all  right.  This  was 
the  day  before  the  ship  sailed.  For  some  reason  which 
I  do  not  remember  I  did  not  go,  thinking  that  the  people 
who  had  had  charge  of  the  instrument  for  so  long  a  time 
could  not  possibly  make  a  mistake  in  connecting  the  two 
wires,  and  I  thought  that,  even  if  the  two  wires  were 
connected  the  wrong  way,  the  mistake  would  be  obvious 
the  first  time  the  instrument  was  tried,  and  that  it  would 
not  take  as  much  as  a  minute  to  correct  it. 

About  a  month  afterward  I  received  a  letter  from  the 
navigator  in  Europe,  saying  that  the  instrument  was  be 
having  peculiarly  and  asking  me  what  was  the  matter. 
I  wrote  back  immediately  that  if  he  would  interchange 
the  two  wires,  the  instrument  would  then  work  correctly. 
About  a  month  later  I  got  an  answer  from  the  navigator, 
saying  that  my  letter  had  arrived  too  late,  and  that  my 
instrument  had  already  been  dismounted  and  stowed 
in  the  hold,  by  order  of  Admiral  Kirkland. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

ELECTRIC  TURRET-TURNING  MECHANISM,  STADIMETER,  RANGE- 
INDICATOR,  HELM-INDICATOR,  ENGINE  TELEGRAPH,  POSI 
TION-FINDER,  SOUNDING-MACHINE,  TELESCOPE  SIGHT, 
AND  NAVAL  WAR  COLLEGE.  IMPORTANCE  OF  FORESIGHT, 
GOOD  IDEAS,  AND  PLANNING  IN  ADVANCE 

ON"  October  1,  1894,  I  was  detached  from  the  San 
Francisco  and  placed  on  waiting  orders.  In  a  few 
days  I  went  to  Washington  to  have  an  interview  with 
Captain  Sampson  about  my  range-finder,  telescope  sight, 
and  range-indicator,  which  had  been  tried  successfully  in 
the  San  Francisco,  and  also  about  some  other  instruments 
which  I  had  recently  invented,  which  I  thought  would 
improve  the  fighting  capacity  of  the  navy,  and  which  I 
wanted  an  opportunity  to  develop.  I  saw  Captain  Samp 
son,  but  only  long  enough  to  make  an  appointment  for 
three  o'clock  that  afternoon.  Shortly  afterward  I  passed 
Commodore  Ramsay  in  a  corridor  of  the  department. 
He  greeted  me  courteously,  with  the  very  agreeable  man 
ner  which  he  always  had;  but  I  was  sorry  that  he  saw 
me,  because  I  knew  that  he  disapproved  of  an  officer  doing 
things  not  in  accordance  with  precedent. 

Later  in  the  day  an  officer  came  to  me  and  told  me 
confidentially  that  Commodore  Ramsay  had  given  orders 
that  I  should  be  put  on  duty  immediately — anywhere. 
So  I  went  in  to  see  Captain  Sampson  before  the  appointed 
time,  and  told  him  of  the  danger  I  was  in.  He  leaned 
back  in  his  chair,  and  gazed  at  me  fixedly  for  a  long  while 
from  the  handsomest  eyes  I  have  ever  seen.  Finally,  he 
said,  "  Would  you  like  to  take  up  the  application  of  elec 
tricity  to  turning  turrets  ? ' ' 

I  answered  that  the  idea  was  not  altogether  new  to  me ; 

198 


ELECTRIC  TURRET-TURNING  MECHANISM     199 

in  fact,  that  I  had  a  patent  for  doing  it,  but  doubted  very 
much  whether  electricity  was  as  good  for  that  purpose  as 
hydraulic  power.  Sampson  said  he  thought  that  the  sub 
ject  was  worth  investigating,  and  that  he  had  already 
had  some  preliminary  trials  made  on  board  of  an  old 
monitor  that  were  very  promising.  I  said  that  I  feared 
that  my  having  a  patent  of  the  kind  that  I  did  have  might 
make  it  improper  for  me  to  take  up  the  work.  Sampson 
said  he  did  not  care  whether  I  had  a  patent  or  not ;  all  he 
wanted  was  to  find  out  if  electricity  would  do  the  work 
better  than  existing  agencies.  Our  discussion  ended  in 
my  realizing  that  an  opportunity  for  doing  valuable  work 
was  being  presented,  and  by  my  saying  that  I  would 
gladly  undertake  it.  I  then  told  Captain  Sampson  that 
I  thought  I  could  do  the  work  better  if  I  lived  in  New 
York  than  if  I  lived  in  Washington,  because  it  was  nearer 
to  the  centers  of  electrical  activity.  Sampson  said  he 
did  not  care  where  I  lived ;  all  he  wanted  was  to  get  the 
work  done  in  the  best  way. 

The  reason  for  my  giving  this  conversation  at  such 
length  is  to  indicate  why  it  was  that  during  all  his  long 
career  Sampson  was  always  able  to  get  the  best  work 
possible  out  of  everybody  under  him.  He  was  a  man  ex 
ceedingly  cold  in  manner,  the  reverse  of  a  politician  in 
every  way,  and  took  little  trouble  to  make  himself  agree 
able;  but  he  nevertheless  inspired,  and  always  kept, 
the  enthusiastic  loyalty  of  every  officer  under  him,  so 
perfectly  loyal  was  he  himself,  so  straightforward,  and 
so  able. 

I  went  back  to  New  York  and  got  into  communication 
with  the  electrical  companies  at  once.  After  trying  some 
more  or  less  crude  apparatus,  it  finally  became  apparent 
that  the  most  promising  plan  was  that  proposed  by  the 
General  Electric  Company  at  Schenectady.  They  called 
it  the  "Ward-Leonard  System,"  because  it  was  covered 
by  the  patents  of  that  distinguished  electrical  engineer. 
It  was  not  practicable,  of  course,  to  send  a  turret  up  to 
Schenectady,  but  the  electrical  engineers  there  designed 


200     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

a  very  ingenious  and  effective  plan  whereby  a  man  of 
imagination  would  be  able  to  judge  of  what  the  Ward- 
Leonard  System  could  accomplish.  Fortunately  for  me, 
my  old  friend  Dana  Greene,  who  had  assisted  me  in  my 
wireless  telegraph  experiments  in  the  Atlanta,  was  then 
at  Schenectady,  in  a  high  position  in  the  company. 

I  was  engaged  at  this  work  for  more  than  two  years. 
I  lived  in  New  York,  and  went  up  to  Schenectady  fre 
quently,  whenever  the  company  informed  me  that  they 
were  ready  with  the  changes  in  the  apparatus  which  the 
last  trial  had  indicated  to  me  as  desirable,  and  which  I 
had  asked  them  to  make.  As  the  final  step,  I  myself  was 
so  fortunate  as  to  be  able  to  devise  an  improvement 
whereby  the  system  was  made  directly  practicable  for  the 
work.  I  patented  my  invention,  and  sold  it  to  the  com 
pany  for  the  exact  amount  that  getting  the  patent  cost  me. 

Finally,  the  apparatus  was  got  to  working  well,  and  I 
reported  the  fact  to  Captain  Sampson.  I  received  an 
order  from  him  to  meet  him  at  a  certain  train  in  New 
York  and  to  go  with  him  to  Schenectady.  When  we  ar 
rived  at  the  works,  and  the  performance  of  the  apparatus 
was  shown  to  him,  his  habitual  and  almost  frozen  reserve 
melted,  and  a  cheerful  geniality  took  its  place.  I  have 
never  seen  a  man  more  delighted. 

It  was  natural  that  he  should  be  delighted,  for  not 
only  had  a  work  in  his  bureau  that  had  been  going  on 
for  two  years  been  brought  to  a  successful  issue ;  but  it 
had  been  brought  to  a  successful  issue  against  the  pre 
diction  of  the  two  other  constructive  bureaus  of  the  Navy 
Department,  the  Bureau  of  Construction  and  the  Bureau 
of  Steam  Engineering;  and  the  Navy  Department  had  be 
come  so  sure  that  Sampson  had  been  working  on  a  wrong 
line  that  it  had  taken  the  handling  of  turrets  away  from 
the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  and  given  it  to  the  Bureau  of 
Construction. 

Shortly  after  Sampson  returned  to  Washington,  I  re 
ceived  an  order  from  him  stating  that  two  naval  con 
structors  had  been  ordered  to  go  to  Schenectady  to  ex- 


ELECTRIC  TURRET-TURNING  MECHANISM     201 

amine  and  report  on  the  electric  turning-apparatus,  and 
directing  me  to  get  into  touch  with  them  and  inform  them 
thoroughly  on  all  matters  connected  with  the  Ward- 
Leonard  System  and  its  application  to  turrets,  including 
my  own  contribution.  So  I  went  to  Schenectady,  and 
stayed  with  these  two  officers  during  the  two  days  that 
they  were  there  examining  and  testing  the  system. 

In  a  few  days  I  received  a  letter  from  Sampson,  dated 
December  21,  and  inclosing  a  copy  of  the  report  wrhich 
the  two  constructors  had  made  as  a  result  of  their  visit. 
The  report  was  dated  December  11,  1895.  It  went  into 
the  whole  subject  of  turret-turning  machinery,  and  in 
conclusion  condemned  the  use  of  electricity.  The  report 
compared  the  relative  values  of  steam  and  electricity  un 
der  seven  heads :  reliability,  accuracy,  simplicity,  space, 
weight,  cost,  and  time  required  to  complete  the  installa 
tion  in  the  particular  case  of  the  U.  S.  S.  Brooklyn,  which 
was  the  next  ship  to  be  completed.  Sampson  directed 
me  to  give  careful  consideration  to  their  report  and  to 
submit  my  views. 

In  reply,  I  submitted  a  letter,  dated  December  24, 1895, 
in  which  I  admitted  the  superiority  of  steam  in  simplicity, 
cheapness,  weight,  and  space,  but  said,  "If  these  were 
the  principal  things  required  in  a  war-ship,  we  should 
now  be  building  sailing  ships  like  the  Dale  and  not  ships 
like  the  Brooklyn";  and  that,  "from  all  the  standpoints 
of  gunnery,  the  electric  system  has  advantages  over  the 
steam  which  cannot  be  overestimated." 

My  letter  was  thirteen  pages  long,  and  was  written  to 
prove  things  which  everybody  now  knows.  After  I  had 
finished  the  letter,  howrever,  I  realized  that,  as  was  usually 
the  case  in  the  navy  in  important  matters  like  this,  the 
decision  would  be  made  by  people  who  had  no  knowledge 
of  the  requirements  of  war,  and  that  my  letter  was  merely 
a  theoretical  answer  to  a  theoretical  argument.  For 
about  an  hour  I  went  through  as  profound  a  period  of 
discouragement  as  I  have  ever  endured,  realizing  that 
not  only  would  all  my  work  probably  be  thrown  away,  but, 


202     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

which  was  more  important,  the  navy  would  probably  lose 
a  valuable  appliance  of  war. 

Suddenly  an  idea  occurred  to  me,  and  I  wrote  at  the 
end  of  the  letter : 

I  beg  to  suggest,  for  the  consideration  of  the  Bureau,  that,  in 
order  to  arrive  at  an  absolute  comparison,  in  practice,  of  the 
merits  of  the  two  systems,  both  for  the  Brooklyn  and  for  the  navy 
in  the  future,  it  might  not  be  bad  to  equip  two  of  the  Brooklyn's 
turrets,  say  the  forward  one  and  the  starboard  one,  with  steam 
machinery,  and  the  port  and  after  one  with  electric  machinery. 
If  this  were  done,  the  two  systems  could  be  tried  on  board  the 
same  ship,  by  the  same  officers,  at  the  same  time,  and  under 
identical  conditions  of  wind  and  sea;  so  that  an  absolutely  fair, 
conclusive  and  final  test  could  be  made. 

I  learned  afterward  that  Captain  Sampson  was  much 
pleased  with  my  letter,  and  that  he  then  wrote  a  letter  to 
the  Navy  Department  which  was  virtually  a  copy  of  my 
letter. 

Sampson  vigorously  pushed  the  acceptance  of  the  elec 
tric  system;  but  the  Bureau  of  Construction  opposed  it, 
and  was  supported  by  the  Bureau  of  Steam  Engineering. 
The  man  who  had  to  decide  was  the  Secretary  of  the 
Navy,  who  knew  almost  nothing  about  any  phase  of  the 
subject,  and  least  of  all  about  the  most  important  phase, 
which  was  the  applicability  of  any  kind  of  system  to  the 
requirements  of  naval  gunnery  in  war.  Captain  Samp 
son  knew  a  great  deal  about  this,  whereas  the  Bureau  of 
Steam  Engineering  and  the  Bureau  of  Construction  knew 
almost  nothing.  The  result  was  that  the  secretary  could 
not  come  to  any  decision  whatever.  Thus  this  important 
matter  was  held  up  because  of  the  lack  of  any  one  who 
combined  the  necessary  authority  with  the  necessary 
knowledge!  Dana  Greene  went  to  Washington  and  vir 
tually  lived  there  for  months.  Finally  the  secretary  de 
cided  to  permit  the  competitive  trial,  the  General  Electric 
Company  installing  the  apparatus  at  its  own  risk. 

When  the  four  turrets  were  ready  for  the  competitive 


ELECTRIC  TURRET-TURNING  MECHANISM     203 

trial,  a  board  of  officers  was  appointed  and  they  conducted 
some  very  careful  trials.  The  report  which  they  made  as 
the  result  was  favorable  in  the  highest  degree  to  the  elec 
tric  system.  One  paragraph  read  as  follows : 

For  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  the  degree  of  accuracy  with 
which  each  gun  could  be  pointed  at  any  desired  object,  distant 
objects  were  selected,  upon  which  the  guns  were  turned.  It  was 
found  that  the  electric  controlled  turrets  could  be  turned  from 
any  point  within  the  limits  of  train,  and  brought  to  rest  with 
the  object  previously  selected  between  the  cross  hairs  of  the 
sighting  telescope,  with  great  facility;  the  controller  being  read 
ily  worked  with  the  operator's  eye  at  the  telescope,  and  the  tur 
ret  having  a  smooth  and  regular  motion.  "While  it  was  possible 
to  arrive  at  the  same  result  with  the  steam  turned  turret,  it  was 
only  done  with  considerable  difficulty ;  owing  to  the  fact  that  the 
controlling  lever  could  not  be  worked  with  sufficient  facility, 
with  the  eye  of  the  operator  at  the  sighting  telescope,  and  to  the 
jerky  movement  of  the  turret. 

No  triumph  could  have  been  more  complete.  The 
forces  of  ultra-conservatism  were  utterly  routed,  and  a 
most  important  step  in  the  forward  progress  in  the  navy 
thereby  permitted.  The  Ward-Leonard  System,  includ 
ing  the  improvement  I  had  made  for  adapting  it  to  ship 
use,  was  adopted  by  the  navy,  and  was  one  of  the  impor 
tant  reasons  for  the  improvements  in  gunnery  which  aft 
erward  resulted.  This  system  continued  to  be  used  until 
it  was  supplanted  by  another  system,  which  in  turn  has 
been  supplanted  by  others,  with  the  progress  of  the  arts ; 
but  these  systems  have  all  been  electric.  Possibly  I  may 
be  permitted  to  feel  a  little  self-satisfaction  sometimes 
when  I  reflect  that  I  was  the  humble  agent,  under  Captain 
Sampson  and  against  powerful  opposition,  in  bringing 
about  this  great  improvement  in  the  naval  gunnery  of  the 
United  States. 

I  was  on  duty  in  connection  with  this  work  from  the 
first  of  October,  1894,  till  the  tenth  of  December,  1896, 
when  I  was  ordered  to  the  Petrel,  fitting  out  at  Mare 
Island,  California,  for  service  in  Asia.  This  order  to  the 


204     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Petrel  was  given  against  the  protest  of  Captain  Sampson, 
who  wished  to  have  me  ordered  to  the  Brooklyn,  for  the 
reasons  that  the  Brooklyn  was  to  have  the  electric  turn 
ing  system,  and  that  several  other  of  my  inventions  were 
to  be  installed  in  her,  and  he  wanted  them  to  be  given 
every  proper  chance  of  passing  the  tests  successfully. 

Living  at  the  Hotel  Beresford,  where  I  lived  with  my 
family  at  this  time,  was  a  Mr.  Henry  Morgenthau.  Mr. 
Morgenthau  made  a  trip  to  Europe,  with  his  family, 
and  it  occupied  about  a  year.  Shortly  after  his  return, 
as  we  were  walking  down  to  the  elevated  station  one 
morning,  he  told  me  of  the  pleasant  trip  they  had  had, 
and  I  said: 

"And  now  I  suppose  you  are  going  to  settle  down  to 
hard  work  again." 

"No,"  he  answered,  "I  do  not  believe  in  hard  work; 
I  believe  in  good  ideas.  One  good  idea  is  worth  a  year  of 
hard  work." 

This  remark  of  Mr.  Morgenthau  I  have  treasured  as 
one  of  the  half-dozen  remarks  worth  hearing  that  I  have 
heard  in  all  my  life.  Mr.  Morgenthau,  after  many  years 
of  success  in  financial  matters,  became  our  ambassador 
to  Turkey.  Twenty-three  years  after  our  conversation  I 
met  him  at  the  annual  dinner  of  the  Economic  Club  in 
New  York,  and  reminded  him  of  our  conversation.  Mr. 
Morgenthau  said  he  did  not  remember  the  conversation, 
and  did  not  know  that  he  had  ever  expressed  himself  in 
those  words.  "But,"  he  added,  "I  have  modeled  my 
whole  life  according  to  that  principle." 

The  manager  of  the  Western  Electric  Company's 
branch  in  New  York  at  this  time  was  Mr.  H.  B.  Thayer,  a 
man  somewhat  younger  than  I,  for  whose  character  and 
ability  I  had  come  gradually  to  have  a  deep  respect. 

One  day  when  I  was  talking  with  him,  he  enunciated  a 
principle  that  I  have  always  remembered,  and  that  has 
guided  me  ever  since.  I  had  said: 

"Mr.  Thayer,  you  're  quite  a  young  man,  and  you  're 
the  manager  of  a  great  organization  in  New  York,  which 


VALUE  OF  GOOD  IDEAS  205 

is  getting  larger  every  day,  and  yet  you  never  seem  to 
have  anything  to  do.  I  have  often  wondered  how  you 
manage  it." 

Mr.  Thayer  flushed  a  little,  for  he  was  a  modest  man, 
and  said: 

"Why,  Mr.  Fiske,  I  don't  have  very  much  to  do,  really. 
It  's  the  other  men  who  do  the  work. ' ' 

"That  's  all  right,  Mr.  Thayer,"  I  answered,  "and  I 
appreciate  your  modesty  and  all  that;  but  would  you 
mind  telling  me  how  you  do  it?  I  'm  talking  seriously, 
because  this  work  is  like  navy  work  in  some  ways,  and 
I  think  you  could  tell  me  something  that  could  help  me 
in  my  profession." 

Mr.  Thayer  hesitated  for  a  few  minutes,  and  then  said : 

"Well,  I  '11  tell  you.  I  try  to  keep  away  from  the  de 
tails  of  the  work  and  from  other  men's  jobs,  and  to  keep 
my  attention  on  the  main  points,  on  my  own  particular 
job.  I  have  the  whole  establishment  divided  into  depart 
ments,  and  each  head  of  department  is  expected  to  run 
his  own  department  himself,  and  not  to  come  to  me  unless 
he  gets  into  trouble.  I  Ve  tried  to  arrange  everything 
so  that  the  establishment  will  run  itself  whether  I  am 
here  or  not.  Then  I  am  free  to  do  what  I  think  is  my 
work,  which  is  to  look  ahead  and  see  what  's  going  to 
happen,  and  prepare  to  do  the  proper  thing  in  time.  7 
think  the  worst  thing  in  the  world  for  a  man  to  do  is  to 
get  into  a  hurry.  My  observation  shows  me  that  if  a 
man  does  a  thing  in  a  hurry,  the  chances  are  a  hundred 
to  one  that  he  won't  do  it  well." 

In  thinking  this  over,  I  compared  it  with  what  Captain 
Taylor  had  said  about  foresight  and  what  Mr.  Morgen- 
thau  said  about  one  good  idea  being  better  than  a  year 
of  hard  work,  and  I  said  to  myself : 

"Now  the  first  thing  to  do  is  to  look  ahead;  the  second 
is  to  try  to  get  good  ideas;  and  the  third  thing  is  to  ar 
range  your  work  in  such  a  way  that  when  you  have  to  do 
anything,  you  will  not  have  to  do  it  in  a  hurry." 

These  three  remarks  have  been  the  ones  that  seem  to 


206     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAE-ADMIEAL 

me  the  wisest  in  point  of  mere  worldly  wisdom  of  any 
that  have  ever  been  made  to  me.  But  are  they  any  more 
significant  than  the  remark  of  the  half-educated  sailor  on 
my  practice  cruise,  that  it  is  easy  to  be  a  naval  officer, 
but  hard  to  be  a  good  one  ?  Obviously,  as  the  old  sailor 
said,  it  is  the  same  in  every  other  vocation:  it  is  easy  to 
occupy  any  position,  but  hard  to  do  its  duties  well.  Now, 
if  there  is  enough  difference  between  a  good  naval  officer 
and  a  poor  one  for  a  half-educated  sailor  to  see  it,  how 
great  must  be  the  difference  between  good  lawyers  and 
poor  ones,  between  good  doctors  and  poor  ones,  between 
good  legislators  and  poor  ones,  between  good  adminis 
trators  and  poor  ones! 

How  much  greater  difference,  also,  there  must  be  be 
tween  good  officials  and  poor  ones  in  the  departments  of 
the  government,  in  which  selection  for  posts  of  authority 
and  responsibility  is  less  carefully  made !  In  the  navy 
no  young  man  can  be  admitted  even  to  the  lowest  class  at 
the  naval  academy  unless  he  is  of  good  moral,  mental, 
and  physical  character ;  he  cannot  graduate  until  after  he 
has  passed  a  satisfactory  moral,  mental,  and  physical 
examination  of  great  rigidity;  and  he  can  not  be  pro 
moted  to  any  rank  thereafter  until  he  has  passed  rigid 
moral,  mental,  and  physical  examinations.  And  yet  in 
almost  every  other  governmental  organization — Con 
gress,  the  Supreme  Court,  the  Cabinet,  the  departments, 
and  all  the  state  and  municipal  positions,  no  examination 
of  any  kind  is  held;  and  the  matter  of  fitness  for  a  posi 
tion  seems  to  be  the  last  point  considered  in  appointing 
a  man  to  fill  it. 

It  is  abuses  of  this  character  that  lend  color  to  the 
charge  that  democracies  are  inefficient.  But  abuses  of 
this  character  can  exist  in  autocracies  as  well,  and  often 
have.  The  fault  is  not  with  either  form  of  government, 
but  with  the  politicians  or  other  incompetents  who  mis 
direct  it. 

About  this  time  Mr.  Bryan  was  making  one  of  his 
" peerless"  tours  through  the  country.  One  night  I  was 


EFFECT  OF  ALCOHOL  207 

talking  about  his  tour  with  Mr.  Theodore  Weicker,  a 
young  business  man.  We  were  saying  how  strange  it  was 
that  in  a  civilized  country  a  man  ignorant  of  the  first 
principles  of  finance,  and  lacking  that  kind  of  ability 
which  makes  a  successful  business  man  or  a  successful 
professional  man,  should  be  able  by  sheer  eloquence  to 
obtain  leadership  in  matters  requiring  for  their  success 
ful  handling  just  the  kind  of  knowledge  and  ability  that 
he  lacked.  Weicker  and  I  agreed  entirely,  but  Weicker 
said  there  was  one  thing  about  Mr.  Bryan  he  admired 
very  much,  and  that  was  the  physical  endurance  which 
he  displayed — an  endurance  which,  Mr.  Weicker  said,  no 
man  could  possibly  have,  except  a  total  abstainer  from 
alcohol.  I  was  much  surprised  to  hear  this  from  Mr. 
Weicker,  because  I  knew  that  he  was  a  man  of  splendid 
intelligence  and  accurate  knowledge,  and  yet  I  had  al 
ways  supposed  that  alcohol  was  good  for  a  man  if  he  did 
not  drink  too  much.  After  that  on  every  opportunity  I 
took  careful  note  of  the  effect  of  alcohol,  both  from  my 
own  experience  and  observation,  and  from  reading, 
and  it  was  not  long  before  I  came  to  believe  that  Weicker 
was  right. 

About  this  time  I  met  occasionally — by  chance,  it 
seemed  to  me — the  German  military  attache,  a  young  man 
holding  the  rank  of  captain.  As  he  and  I  were  of  equal 
rank,  I  did  not  think  it  odd  that  he  invited  me  to  lunch 
one  day  when  he  was  in  New  York.  But  I  was  a  little 
surprised  when  he  led  me  to  Delmonico's  instead  of  to 
one  of  the  cheaper  restaurants  where  I  usually  took  my 
lunch.  We  had  a  far  more  luxurious  lunch  than  I  had 
expected,  including  a  quart  of  Rhine  wine,  which  the  cap 
tain  told  me  was  of  an  old  and  rare  vintage.  When  he 
came  to  pay  the  bill,  I  saw  that  it  was  for  more  than  thir 
teen  dollars.  I  thought  over  the  incident  that  afternoon, 
and  concluded  that  the  captain  must  have  had  some  end 
to  serve.  I  concluded  also  that  probably  he  had  suc 
ceeded,  because  I  remembered  that  I  had  talked  a  good 
deal,  and  the  captain  very  little. 


208     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

During  the  time  that  I  was  on  the  duty  of  adapt 
ing  electricity  to  turning  turrets  I  was  able  to  construct 
a  number  of  new  appliances  that  I  invented.  My  two 
range-finders  in  France,  after  working  well  for  a  while, 
had  finally  gotten  out  of  adjustment,  because  there  was 
no  one  in  charge  of  them  who  combined  knowledge  of  the 
instruments  with  any  special  interest  in  them;  but  in 
some  of  the  other  navies  they  seemed  to  be  working  very 
well.  The  report  on  my  range-indicators  in  the  San 


The  Stadimeter. 
U.  S.  Patent  No.  496,075.     Dated  July  31,  1894. 


Operating  the  Stadimeter. 

Francisco  had  been  so  good  that  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance 
adopted  them  for  the  new  ships. 

One  of  the  first  things  I  took  up  was  the  making  of  a 
stadimeter,  a  small  and  simple  instrument  which  I  had 
invented  in  1890,  but  had  never  been  able  to  get  made. 
It  was  designed  as  an  auxiliary  to  the  range-finder,  and 
to  meet  the  objection  that,  even  if  the  range-finder  worked 
well  in  the  first  part  of  a  battle,  it  was  so  vulnerable  to 
gun-fire,  that  it  probably  would  be  put  out  of  action  soon. 


THE  STADIMETER  209 

By  the  use  of  the  stadimeter,  I  thought  that  this  diffi 
culty  could  be  overcome,  because  the  stadimeter  was  so 
constructed  that,  when  the  range-finder  took  its  first  read 
ing  of  distance,  the  stadimeter  could  be  set  for  that  dis 
tance,  and  the  height  of  the  mast  of  the  enemy  ship  could 
be  then  read  off  the  stadimeter,  using  the  stadimeter  like 
the  sextant  to  bring  the  reflected  image  of  the  top  of  the 
mast  into  line  with  the  direct  image  of  the  water-line  of 
the  ship.  After  that  the  stadimeter  could  be  set  at  that 
mast  height,  and  the  range  read  from  it  by  continually 
keeping  these  two  images  in  line.  When  I  was  in  Eu 
rope,  and  afterward  in  the  Yorktown  and  San  Francisco, 
I  could  not  get  the  company  even  to  patent  it,  because  they 
conceived  the  extraordinary  notion  that  it  would  inter 
fere  with  the  range-finder.  When  I  got  home  from  the 
San  Francisco  cruise,  however,  I  finally  convinced  them 
of  their  mistake,  and  got  authority  to  make  two.  One 
of  these  was  sent  to  the  U.  S.  S.  New  York,  and  the  other 
to  the  U.  S.  S.  Cincinnati.  The  reports  from  both  ships 
were  not  only  favorable,  but  enthusiastic. 

The  stadimeter  was  a  success  from  the  start,  and  has 
been  ever  since.  All  our  vessels  now  are  supplied  with 
it,  and  it  can  be  found  in  somewhat  modified  forms  in  all 
the  principal  navies.  Not  long  ago  some  man  asked  me 
how  much  money  I  had  made  on  the  stadimeter.  I  told 
him  that  I  had  never  made  any  money  on  it,  but  that  I 
had  the  honor  on  one  occasion  of  paying  out  fifty-five 
cents  to  send  a  stadimeter  by  express  somewhere. 

During  my  cruises  in  the  Yorktown  and  San  Francisco 
I  had  invented  a  helm-indicator,  a  steering-telegraph, 
an  engine  telegraph,  and  a  speed  and  direction  indicator. 

All  of  these  instruments  except  the  last  utilized  the 
same  principle  that  I  had  utilized  in  the  range-finder  and 
the  range-indicator — I  mean  the  principle  that,  if  a  cur 
rent  of  electricity  is  sent  through  an  arc  of  resistance 
wire,  which  has  in  circuit  with  it  a  volt-meter  or  galvano 
meter,  the  indications  of  that  volt-meter  will  change  in 
stantaneously  with  the  current  which  it  receives.  There- 


210     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

fore  if  the  wires  which  go  to  the  volt-meter  be  moved 
along  the  resistance  wire,  the  volt-meter  can  be  made  to 
indicate  the  positions  to  which  those  wires  have  been 
moved,  and  it  is  possible  to  make  apparatus  which  can  in 
dicate  at  a  distant  station  any  desired  signal  by  simply 
moving  a  contact  along  a  resistance  wire. 

In  the  helm-indicator  the  arc  of  resistance  wire  was 
placed  near  the  rudder  of  the  ship  in  such  a  way  that, 
when  the  rudder  moved,  it  caused  a  contact  to  move  over 
the  arc  of  the  resistance  wire,  and  thereby  caused  indi 
cations  to  appear  that  showed  the  positions  of  the  rudder 
on  any  desired  number  of  volt-meters,  these  volt-meters 
being  incased  in  heavy  iron  frames,  made  strong  and 
water-tight.  In  the  steering-telegraph,  an  officer  on  the 
bridge  or  in  the  conning-tower  moved  a  contact  over  the 
resistance  wire  to  some  such  mark  as  "starboard  10  de 
grees,"  and  thus  caused  the  order  "starboard  10  de 
grees"  to  appear  instantly  on  an  indicator  (volt-meter) 
placed  near  the  steering-engine  or  at  any  other  desired 
point. 

The  engine  telegraph  was  a  much  more  complicated 
apparatus,  but  based  on  the  same  principle.  It  was  beau 
tifully  made  by  the  Western  Electric  Company,  and  was 
one  of  the  finest  pieces  of  apparatus  that  I  have  ever 
seen.  By  it  an  officer  or  a  quartermaster,  by  manipulat 
ing  two  handles,  could  give  orders  to  both  the  starboard 
and  port  engine-rooms  as  to  the  speed  at  which  he  wished 
each  engine  to  be  run,  and  would  get  back  an  indication 
immediately  that  the  order  was  understood.  It  was  more 
accurate  than  any  engine  telegraph  ever  produced  be 
fore,  and  more  complete  than  any  other  produced  since. 

The  speed-and-direction-indicator  consisted  of  an  alter 
nating  volt-meter,  in  circuit  with  an  alternating  current 
dynamo  which  was  turned  by  each  main  engine  of  the 
ship.  The  faster  the  engine  turned,  the  greater  was  the 
deflection  of  the  volt-meter. 

All  these  instruments  were  first  tried  by  boards  of 
officers,  and  afterward  were  given  service  trials  in  ships, 


VARIOUS  INVENTIONS  211 

lasting  usually  from  six  months  to  a  year,  before  they 
were  adopted.  In  February,  1896,  the  use  of  my  inven 
tions,  except  the  telescope  sight,  , .as  as  shown  in  the 
following  table: 

Range-finders.  These  were  installed  in  the  Baltimore, 
San  Francisco,  New  York,  Columbia,  Minneapolis,  Cin 
cinnati,  Maine,  Texas,  Indiana,  Massachusetts,  and  Ore 
gon.  Five  more  had  been  ordered,  and  were  nearly  com 
pleted,  but  they  had  not  yet  been  assigned  to  ships. 

Range-indicators.  These  had  been  installed  in  the 
San  Francisco,  Cincinnati,  Maine,  Texas,  and  Indiana, 
and  were  about  to  be  installed  in  the  Massachusetts  and 
Oregon. 

Stadimeters.  These  had  been  issued  to  the  Neiv  York, 
Cincinnati,  Maine,  Texas,  Indiana,  Raleigh,  Montgom 
ery,  Columbia,  and  Minneapolis.  Ten  more  had  been  or 
dered,  and  they  were  then  completed  and  about  to  be 
issued. 

Engine  telegraphs.  New  York,  Indiana,  and  Massa 
chusetts. 

Helm-indicators.  New  York,  Indiana,  and  Massachu 
setts. 

Speed-and-direction-indicator.    New  York. 

Steering -telegraphs.  New  York,  Indiana,  and  Massa 
chusetts. 

Each  one  of  these  inventions  was  an  invention  radically 
new  and  not  a  mere  improvement  over  somebody  else's 
invention.  As  far  as  I  have  been  able  to  ascertain,  not 
only  were  they  new,  but  the  telegraphs  and  indicators 
were  the  first  successful  endeavors  made  by  anybody  to 
overcome  the  handicaps  to  interior  communication,  which 
had  been  produced  by  the  new  and  complicated  construc 
tion  of  steel  war-ships;  and  the  range-finder  was  the 
first  successful  endeavor  to  ascertain  the  distance  of 
the  enemy  with  a  satisfactory  degree  of  accuracy.  A 
partial  exception  to  this  statement  must  be  a  range-indi 
cator  tried  in  the  British  Navy  shortly  before  by  the  old 
"step-by-step  method,"  which  was  not  satisfactory. 


212     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

To  these  various  inventions  Mr.  Park  Benjamin  gave 
the  happy  name  "The  Nerves  of  the  War-ship,"  and  in  a 
brilliant  article  which  appeared  in  Harper's  Monthly  in 
March,  1896,  he  pointed  out  that  they  served  the  same 
purpose  in  carrying  information  and  orders  to  the  mate 
rial  guns  and  engines  of  a  ship  as  do  the  nerves  of  the 
human  body  in  carrying  information  to  the  brain,  and 
orders  to  the  muscles.  In  the  course  of  the  article  Mr. 
Benjamin  said: 

To  assert  that  we  have  not  made  progress  in  providing  nerves 
for  our  ships  commensurate  with  that  achieved  in  creating  brains 
and  muscles  is,  in  substance,  to  say  that  the  inventors  of  the  coun 
try  have  not  dealt  with  the  problem.  The  single  fact  that,  of 
the  important  instruments  before  detailed,  most  of  them,  the 
range-finder,  the  stadimeter,  the  range-indicator,  the  telescopic 
sight,  the  newest  forms  of  helm  and  engine  controlling  telegraphs, 
and  the  speed-indicator,  are  the  invention  of  one  man,  Lieut. 
Fiske,  and  he  an  officer  in  active  service  in  the  Navy, —  is  suf 
ficient  to  show  how  little  attention  the  subject  has  attracted  from 
the  fifty  thousand  ingenious  Americans  who  yearly  ask  the  gov 
ernment  for  patents. 

Concerning  this  article,  The  Army  and  Navy  Journal 
said: 

The  importance  of  Lieut.  Fiske 's  electrical  inventions  is  clearly 
indicated  by  the  graphic  description  given  by  Mr.  Benjamin  of 
the  conditions  under  which  a  modern  naval  engagement  must 
be  fought.  He  shows  how  nearly  such  an  engagement  ap 
proaches  to  a  free  fight  or  "melee"  controlled  solely  by  chance; 
and  how  as  between  equally  powerful  ships,  that  one  may  be  ex 
pected  to  win  which  is  the  more  skillfully  handled  during  the 
fight.  "As  between  two  fleets  otherwise  equal,"  says  Mr.  Benja 
min,  "that  fleet  will  prevail,  the  ships  whereof  are  by  their  re 
spective  commanders  the  more  dexterously  controlled. ' '  To  have 
the  various  mechanical  contrivances  of  the  complex  mechanism 
of  a  man-of-war  subject  to  the  will  of  the  master,  is  the  first  step 
in  efficient  control.  Says  Mr.  Benjamin,  "If  between  him  who 
directs  the  vessels  in  combat  and  the  engines,  the  guns,  and  the 
helm,  efficient  instrumentalities  strictly  analogous  to  the  nerves 


VARIOUS  INVENTIONS  213 

in  the  body  are  absent,  dexterous  working  of  that  mighty  fabric 
is  impossible,  and  a  paralysis  greater  or  less  in  degree,  must  en 
sue." 

From  this  time  until  I  left  for  the  Petrel  and  Asia  in 
December  these  various  instruments  continued  to  be  sup 
plied,  and  for  some  time  thereafter.  I  was  away  from 
New  York,  however,  for  considerably  more  than  three 
years,  and  at  the  other  end  of  the  earth.  Mr.  Oastler, 
who  had  been  my  assistant,  had  taken  a  position  with  the 
Western  Electric  Company  in  Europe,  and  the  result  was 
that  there  was  no  person  or  persons  so  immediately  inter 
ested  as  to  take  that  care  which  is  always  required  in 
order  to  establish  new  apparatus  in  use.  As  time  went 
on,  other  apparatus  were  presented  to  fulfil  the  same 
purposes,  based  on  what  these  instruments  had  accom 
plished  and  on  the  faults  which  they  had  developed,  and 
brought  forward  with  the  intention  of  improving  on 
them.  These  new  instruments  had  the  advantage  of  the 
propelling  power  of  some  person  behind  them,  while  my 
instruments  had  nobody  behind  them.  The  result  was 
that,  as  the  years  went  by,  my  instruments  were  gradually 
replaced  by  others. 

Two  exceptions  to  this  remark  are  the  stadimeter  and 
the  telescope  sight.  Both  of  these  instruments  have  con 
tinued  in  use  to  the  present  day.  I  do  not  believe  that 
there  is  any  gun  as  large  as  three  inches  in  caliber  on 
board  of  any  ship  in  the  world  that  does  not  use  my  tele 
scope  sight. 

Concerning  the  telescope  sight  an  official  text-book  of 
the  United  States  Naval  Academy  called  "  Ordnance  and 
Gunnery"  said,  ''It  was  the  introduction  of  the  telescope 
sight,  with  its  added  advantages  that  has  well-nigh  caused 
a  revolution  in  naval  gunnery.  It  was  an  improvement 
so  great,  that  it  may  well  be  ranked  with  the  change  from 
smooth  bore  to  rifled  guns." 

On  May  20,  1893,  I  applied  for  a  patent  on  a  "tele 
scopic  sight,"  which  described  and  illustrated  an  appa 
ratus  for  use  with  guns  of  a  kind  like  the  six-pounder 


214     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIKAL 

on  which  the  telescope  sight  had  been  tried  in  the  San 
Francisco,  in  which  the  gun  recoiled  in  a  sleeve,  but  the 
sleeve  did  not  recoil;  the  sleeve  being  pivoted  on  the 
trunnions,  and  the  telescope  being  attached  to  the  sleeve. 
A  patent  on  this  was  granted  on  April  14,  1896,  and  it 
covered  virtually  all  of  the  methods  used  since  then,  in 
adapting  telescope  sights  to  ships'  guns,  more  specifically 
than  did  my  previous  and  broader  patents. 

One  feature  claimed  and  patented  was  a  way  of  tilting 
the  sight  to  the  left  or  right  in  order  to  correct  for  the 
"drift"  of  the  projectile.  This  patented  feature  has 
been  infringed,  I  believe,  by  all  the  guns  in  the  world 
except  muskets.  I  know  it  was  infringed  by  our  own 
army,  and  I  was  about  to  institute  proceedings  at  one 
time ;  but  just  then  I  was  ordered  to  sea. 

Besides  these  navy  things,  I  invented  a  position-finder, 
based  on  the  same  principle  as  the  range-finder,  but 
adapted  to  forts,  and  this  was  placed  into  position  at 
Fort  Hamilton.  It  was  tried  in  June,  1895,  and  was  per 
fectly  successful.  By  this  time,  however,  the  telephone 
had  acquired  the  confidence  of  the  people  to  a  degree 
which  it  had  never  had  before,  with  the  result  that  it  was 
found  possible  with  the  telephone  and  a  few  simple  ap 
pliances  to  do  virtually  all  that  my  instrument  did. 

Fort  Hamilton  was  a  delightful  place  in  those  days  to 
a  man  who  went  there  from  the  hurry  and  noise  of  New 
York.  There  were  about  seventy-five  soldiers  in  the  en 
tire  fort,  and  somewhat  fewer  than  seventy-five  officers. 
I  do  not  remember  how  many;  but  they  were  very  nu 
merous  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  enlisted  men. 
There  was  almost  nothing  of  any  kind  to  do,  because  there 
was  nothing  to  be  done.  The  few  old  guns  that  were 
there  were  useless  for  any  practical  purposes,  and  this 
was  so  well  known  that  few  drills  were  ever  held  with 
them.  Once  a  year  the  annual  target  practice  was  held, 
and  a  target  was  anchored  somewhere  out  on  the  Lower 
Bay.  Then  the  old  cast-iron  guns  were  slowly  loaded 
one  by  one,  and  fired  one  by  one,  at  the  target,  which  was 


POSITION  FINDEE  215 

not  very  far  away,  the  gun  crew  getting  behind  a  safe 
bomb-proof  and  firing  the  gun  by  electricity ;  because  they 
were  afraid  it  might  burst.  The  lieutenants  went  on 
duty  for  twenty-four  hours  once  in  nine  days.  When  an 
officer  was  on  duty,  he  walked  about  the  fort  once  in  a 
while,  and  went  to  the  morning  guard  mount.  When  an 
officer  was  off  duty,  he  only  went  to  the  guard  mount. 
The  seventy-five  enlisted  men  were  mostly  old  inhabitants 
there,  who  spent  their  time  as  energetically  as  the  officers, 
but  hardly  more  so.  One  of  the  officers — I  think  the 
adjutant — was  Lieutenant  Harris,  who  was  fifty-five 
years  old.  Harris  was  an  able,  energetic,  and  intelligent 
man;  it  seemed  a  shame  that  a  larger  field  could  not  be 
found  for  his  abilities. 

One  afternoon  I  had  a  curious  experience  at  Fort 
Hamilton  that  I  have  never  been  able  to  explain  to  myself. 
On  one  of  the  days  when  my  position-finder  was  being 
tested,  I  showed  my  stadimeter  to  the  board,  thinking  that 
it  might  be  found  useful  for  finding  the  range,  or  the 
change  of  range,  of  an  enemy  ship  from  a  fort.  Now 
this  stadimeter  had  found  its  way  easily  into  ship  use, 
because  the  apprentice  boys  could  be  easily  taught  to  use 
it.  Yet  when  I  showed  this  instrument  to  the  highly 
trained  and  scientific  officers  of  the  board,  some  of  whom 
were  engineers,  some  of  whom  were  ordnance  officers, 
and  some  of  whom  were  artillery  officers,  I  could  not  make 
a  single  one  of  them  understand  it.  Not  only  this,  but  I 
could  not  explain  its  practical  use  in  such  a  way  that  any 
of  those  officers  could  take  it  into  his  hands  and  use  it! 

In  July,  1896,  my  wife's  father  died.  An  affectionate, 
modest,  and  able  man  of  the  scholarly  type,  he  left  behind 
him  in  the  hearts  of  those  who  knew  him  a  loving  and 
lasting  memory. 

In  September,  1896,  I  published  in  the  United  States 
Naval  Institute  an  article  called  ''Electricity  in  Naval 
Life."  It  was  very  long,  and  went  into  all  the  naval 
uses  of  electricity,  past,  present,  and  prospective,  and 
attracted  considerable  attention  both  in  the  United  States 


216     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

and  abroad.  The  Army  and  Navy  Journal  said  of  it, 
''His  article  on  the  subject  of  electricity  as  applied  to 
naval  affairs  is  the  most  complete  thus  far  published." 

At  this  time  it  was  hardly  respectable  to  be  an  elec 
trician.  Any  man  who  wished  to  preserve  a  high  stand 
ing  among  his  acquaintances  was  apt  to  speak  of  electri 
cal  men  as  being  visionary  and  of  electrical  apparatus  as 
being  unreliable.  Naval  officers  assumed  a  tone  some 
what  more  advanced  than  this;  a  practical  naval  officer 
of  sound  judgment  would  be  apt  to  say  something  like 
this:  "I  believe  that  there  is  a  good  deal  in  electricity, 
and  I  think  that  we  should  give  a  certain  amount  of  en 
couragement  to  electricians,  and  grant  any  naval  inven 
tions  that  are  proposed  a  fair  hearing;  but  at  the  same 
time  we  must  not  forget  that  it  is  seamanship  and  guns 
that  should  receive  the  serious  attention  of  the  naval 
officer,  and  not  these  electrical  devices,  which,  after  all, 
are  not  very  important." 

So  my  article  was  not  received  with  much  approval, 
especially  by  the  elderly  officers  occupying  high  positions, 
and  more  especially  by  officers  like  Commodore  Ramsay 
and  his  followers.  Paragraphs  like  the  following,  which 
is  taken  from  the  article,  were  especially  distasteful  to 
men  of  this  class : 

Let  us  hope  that  we  soon  shall  see  a  civilized  modern  ship,  in 
which  there  shall  be  a  fine,  large,  dynamo  room,  like  those  under 
the  great  New  York  hotels,  where  power  will  be  generated  for 
lighting  the  ship,  making  the  signals,  hoisting  the  ammunition, 
turning  the  turrets,  operating  the  telephones,  hoisting  the  boats, 
ringing  the  bells,  weighing  the  anchor,  sounding  the  alarms,  run 
ning  the  launches,  firing  the  guns,  steering  the  ship,  etc.  And 
why  should  we  not  have  a  neat  electric  galley,  such  as  are  fre 
quent  in  New  York,  where  the  meals  of  all  can  be  prepared  in 
cleanliness  and  quiet,  with  only  a  fraction  of  the  fuss  and  con 
fusion  now  attending  the  getting  of  the  food  and  coal,  and  the 
heating  of  the  water?  And  why  should  not  both  officers  and 
men,  when  they  go  on  night-watch,  frequently  in  the  wet  and  rain, 
be  given  a  light  repast,  cooked  on  an  electric  stove,  the  size  of  a 
quart  pot? 


HEART  ECCENTRICITIES  217 

Of  course,  all  these  things  have  long  since  been  done. 

In  October,  1895, 1  was  attacked  with  a  very  distressing 
intermittency  of  the  heart.  Without  the  slightest  appar 
ent  reason  the  heart  would  lose  a  beat,  and  very  fre 
quently.  Having  been  told  so  many  times  by  the  doctors 
on  my  examinations  for  promotion  that  I  had  organic 
disease  of  the  heart,  this  naturally  led  me  to  think  that 
my  last  hour  as  a  living  human  being  was  approaching. 
Finally  I  consulted  a  navy  doctor,  an  elderly  man  of  long 
experience,  and  he,  after  examining  me  several  times  dur 
ing  a  period  of  two  or  three  months,  told  me  frankly 
that  he  did  not  know  what  was  the  matter  with  me,  but 
that  he  thought  I  might  be  nervous,  in  which  case  I  ought 
to  consult  a  nerve  specialist.  Several  years  afterward 
this  doctor's  sister  told  me  that  the  doctor  told  her  at  this 
time  I  could  not  live  two  years.  I  went  to  a  nerve  spe 
cialist,  however,  Dr.  Graeme  Hammond.  Hammond  gave 
me  some  quieting  medicine,  which  helped  me ;  but  I  think 
that  which  helped  me  a  great  deal  more  was  the  psychic 
or  mental  influence  he  exercised  on  me,  and  his  conse 
quent  ability  to  impress  me  with  the  idea  that  the  trouble 
was  not  organic,  but  functional. 

The  trouble  was  not  entirely  overcome,  however,  for 
my  heart  would  continually  lose  a  beat.  I  gradually  be 
came  accustomed  to  it  in  a  measure,  but  of  course  not 
wholly.  When  I  awoke  in  the  morning  my  heart  would 
begin  to  behave  in  the  most  fantastic  and  erratic  way, 
gradually  becoming  more  regular  during  the  day,  but 
not  entirely  so.  One  night  during  the  following  winter, 
being  threatened  with  a  cold,  I  took  ten  grains  of  quinine 
before  going  to  bed.  When  I  awoke  the  following  morn 
ing  I  did  not  seem  to  have  any  heart  at  all,  so  smooth  and 
regular  was  its  beating.  In  the  years  that  followed, 
whenever  my  heart  got  particularly  irregular,  quinine 
would  always  steady  it  materially.  During  the  following 
three  years  the  intermittency  was  very  troublesome  at 
times,  but  along  a  decreasing  scale.  During  the  last 
few  years  I  have  been  troubled  with  it  very  slightly. 


218     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Different  doctors  have  given  me  different  reasons  for  the 
trouble.  My  personal  belief  is  that  it  was,  like  most 
other  troubles,  the  combined  result  of  many  causes,  and 
that  in  this  case  the  principal  cause  was  indigestion. 

During  the  year  1896  I  worked  out  a  plan  which  I  had 
had  in  my  mind  for  a  long  time  for  signaling  from  ships. 
The  principal  means  of  signaling  then  was  with  flags, 
which  had  the  drawbacks  that  their  colors  could  not  be 
easily  distinguished  over  long  distances,  that  sometimes 
the  flags  hung  straight  up  and  down,  and  at  other  times 
the  wind  would  blow  them  in  such  directions  that  they 
could  hardly  be  seen.  After  making  many  trials  with 
small  shapes  of  different  kinds,  painted  in  different 
colors,  I  finally  concluded  that  the  semaphore,  or  revolv 
ing  arm,  could  be  seen  farther  than  anything  else  of  the 
same  area,  and  could  be  made  to  move  more  quickly  and 
with  less  power. 

So  I  devised  a  system  in  which  there  should  be  on  the 
mast  four  arms,  one  under  the  other,  about  ten  feet 
apart ;  each  arm  about  six  feet  long  and  a  foot  wide,  each 
arm  working  in  pair  with  another  arm,  which  was  at  the 
same  height,  but  which  moved  in  a  vertical  plane  at  right 
angles  to  it.  The  apparatus  was  just  completed  in  the 
shop  when  I  had  to  leave  to  join  the  Petrel.  A  few  days 
before  leaving  we  set  the  whole  apparatus  up  in  a  big 
room  at  the  Western  Electrical  Company.  The  appa 
ratus  was  electrical,  and  so  constructed  that,  by  touching 
a  letter,  say  "A,"  on  a  keyboard,  the  two  upper  arms 
would  instantly  revolve  into  the  horizontal  position: 
whereas  by  touching  another  letter,  say  "Z,"  all  four 
arms  would  assume  a  horizontal  position.  When  every 
thing  was  ready,  and  several  people  had  congregated  to 
see  the  result  of  the  experiment,  I  touched  the  letter 
"A."  To  our  amazement,  the  apparatus  signaled  Z! 

I  explained  that  the  workmen  had  probably  got  the 
keys  on  the  key-board  misplaced,  and  then  I  touched  the 
letter  "B."  To  our  greater  amazement,  the  apparatus 
again  signaled  "Z."  I  tried  all  the  other  letters  of  the 


ELECTRIC  TURRET-TURNING  MECHANISM     219 

alphabet,  .and  no  matter  what  letter  I  touched,  the  appa 
ratus  -signaled  "Z."  As  this  was  almost  my  last  day 
before  leaving,  this  curious  performance  was  discourag 
ing.  It  was  soon  discovered,  however,  that  it  was  merely 
a  matter  of  a  wrong  connection  of  the  return  wire.  The 
error  was  rectified  in  a  few  minutes,  and  then  the  appa 
ratus  signaled  the  various  letters  touched  in  the  most 
correct  and  obedient  fashion. 

Another  invention  that  I  was  developing  at  this  time 
was  a  .sounding-machine.  It  had  occurred  to  me  some 
years  before  that  a  mass  of  a  given  weight  and  shape 
must  sink  in  water  at  an  absolutely  definite  speed,  and 
that  therefore  it  was  merely  necessary  to  drop  a  weight 
overboard,  start  a  stop-watch  when  the  weight  struck  the 
water,  and  stop  the  watch  when  the  weight  struck  the 
bottom,  in  order  to  find  the  depth  of  the  water.  In  fol 
lowing  out  this  idea,  I  thought  the  attempt  could  be  ac 
complished  in  a  practical  way  by  having  the  weight  at 
tached  to  a  wire,  like  the  lead  in  a  Thompson  sounding- 
machine,  and  that  the  instant  the  lead  struck  the  bottom 
would  be  indicated  by  the  sudden  slackening  of  the  wire. 
When  I  was  in  the  Atlanta,  and  afterward  in  the  York- 
town  and  San  Francisco,  I  made  several  crude  experi 
ments  along  this  line  which,  though  they  were  crude, 
promised  excellent  results,  if  properly  followed  up. 

So,  in  the  early  spring  of  1896,  I  got  the  Western 
Electric  Company  to  make  an  apparatus  embodying  this 
idea,  and  when  I  went  to  the  war  college  in  Newport  dur 
ing  the  summer,  I  made  many  experiments  with  it  that 
were  quite  successful.  In  order  that  the  weight  should 
present  the  same  surface  to  the  water,  and  therefore  meet 
the  same  resistance  to  sinking  in'  all  circumstances,  the 
lead  was  spherical,  being  a  round  ball  of  lead  and  twenty- 
five  pounds  in  weight.  The  principal  trouble  I  had  was 
the  extreme  difficulty  of  getting  water  deep  enough  for 
trial,  in  places  where  the  depth  was  known  with  sufficient 
accuracy,  largely  because  of  the  shallowness  of  the  water 
on  our  Atlantic  coast. 


220     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIRAL 

When  I  received  orders  to  go  to  the  Petrel,  the  West 
ern  Electric  Company  built  me  another  machine  like  the 
one  I  had  already  tried,  but  with  certain  improvements 
which  the  experiments  indicated.  This  machine  was  aft 
erward  installed  at  the  extreme  after  end  of  the  Petrel. 
As  I  was  to  be  the  navigator,  I  looked  forward  to  having 
many  opportunities  for  testing  it,  and  of  finding  it  a  great 
help  practically  to  me  in  the  discharge  of  my  responsible 
duties  in  navigating  the  ship  near  the  rocky  coast  of 
China. 

During  the  summer  of  1896  I  was  one  of  about  twenty- 
five  officers  who  formed  the  annual  class  at  the  war  col 
lege  in  Newport.  Captain  Harry  Taylor,  who  had  been 
my  captain  in  the  Saratoga,  was  the  president,  and  a 
most  excellent  president.  He  had  that  peculiar  combi 
nation  of  knowledge,  foresightedness,  and  tact  which  is 
rare,  and  which  is  potent  when  dealing  with  large  ques 
tions.  The  war  college  was  then  staggering  along,  sup 
ported  by  a  few  men  like  Taylor,  all  inspired  by  Admiral 
Luce;  but  it  was  ridiculed  by  most  officers,  and  opposed 
by  men  like  Commodore  Ramsay.  Ramsay  was  the  prin 
cipal  obstacle,  not  because  he  represented  the  thought  of 
the  Navy,  which  he  did  not,  but  because  he  had  a  good 
deal  of  ability  in  the  line  of  organization  and  detail,  and 
mainly  because  he  was  the  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Navi 
gation,  and  the  principal  adviser  of  the  secretary  in 
strategy. 

Very  few  of  the  class  took  the  course  seriously;  and 
in  order  to  induce  officers  to  go  to  the  college,  except 
aginst  their  will  and  therefore  in  a  non-receptive  mental 
state,  Taylor  made  the  courses  as  easy  and  pleasant 
as  possible.  The  officers  were  expected  to  be  at  the 
college  by  nine  in  the  morning  and  to  remain  there 
till  half  past  one;  that  was  all.  A  good  library  was 
placed  at  their  disposal,  and  interesting  lectures  and 
war  games  were  offered  for  their  instruction;  but  the 
whole  endeavor  was  to  convince  officers  of  the  useful 
ness  of  the  college  and  not  to  force  them  to  do  any- 


NAVAL  WAR  COLLEGE  221 

thing.  To  me  personally  the  course  in  international 
law  was  the  most  interesting.  I  had  become  inter 
ested  in  it  at  the  Naval  Academy,  where  I  had  stood  at 
the  head  of  the  class  in  that  study,  and  I  was  very  glad 
to  take  it  up  again.  But  on  taking  it  up  again  at  the  rela 
tively  mature  age  of  forty-two,  the  flimsy  nature  of  the 
basis  on  which  it  rested  became  apparent.  Despite  its 
evident  value,  it  was  evidently  not  law  at  all,  or  hardly 
even  a  collection  of  principles;  but  rather  an  aggrega 
tion  of  precedents  and  agreements,  which  were  very  con 
venient  as  a  basis  of  future  agreements  and  decisions,  so 
long  as  no  very  great  national  issue  was  at  stake,  but 
which  lacked  that  force  to  compel  obedience,  on  which  all 
law  must  rest, — if  it  is  to  be  effective. 

One  idea  was  apparently  held  by  the  war  college  and 
by  Captain  Taylor,  that  seemed  to  me  to  be  incorrect— 
the  idea  that  strategy  was  independent  of  mechanism. 
One  forenoon  there  was  a  discussion  held  by  all  the  class 
and  the  staff  of  the  war  college,  Captain  Taylor  presid 
ing,  in  regard  to  a  certain  kind  of  attack.  I  was  one  of 
the  junior  members  of  the  class,  but  I  remember  arguing 
that  the  decision  reached  was  incorrect  then,  although 
it  might  have  been  correct  a  few  years  before,  because 
a  certain  kind  of  weapon  had  been  developed  in  the  inter 
vening  time.  And  I  also  remember  Captain  Taylor 
pointing  out  courteously,  but  forcefully,  that  my  views 
were  incorrect,  because  strategy  was  not  concerned  with 
weapons,  which  changed,  but  rather  with  principles, 
which  never  changed.  At  that  time  Captain  Taylor  was 
doing  a  splendid  work  in  trying  to  wean  officers  from  too 
close  attention  to  the  materials  of  warfare,  such  as  guns, 
etc.,  and  to  show  them  that  all  those  material  things  were 
simply  tools  which  strategists  used,  just  as  a  workman 
uses  a  hammer.  I  felt  dimly  then  that  Captain  Taylor 
was  carrying  his  idea  too  far,  and  I  think  that  I  was 
right.  In  fact,  I  am  sure  that  army  and  navy  officers 
realize  now  that,  while  the  principles  of  strategy  do  not 
change  any  more  than  do  the  principles  of  mechanics,  yet 


222     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  applications  of  the  principles  of  both  strategy  and 
mechanics  must  change  in  order  to  keep  pace  with  the 
new  appliances  and  mechanisms  that  are  born. 

There  was  a  great  deal  of  social  life  at  Jamestown,  on 
Narragansett  Bay,  opposite  Newport,  that  summer.     One 
evening  quite  late  I  happened  to  stroll  in  some  dim  part 
of  one  of  the  piazzas  and  I  heard  a  woman's  voice  say: 
"What  kind  of  a  man  is  this  Mr.  Fiske!" 
"Oh,  I  think  he  's  a  very  nice  man  in  some  ways,"  said 
another  voice.     "He  's  awfully  learned,  you  know;  but 
he  's  as  slow  -as  a  post." 


CHAPTER  XV 

ON    THE    CHINA   STATION 

ONE  bright  afternoon  I  took  the  four  o'clock  train 
from  the  Grand  Central  Station,  New  York,  bound 
for  San  Francisco,  or  rather  for  the  Mare-Island  Navy- 
Yard  and  the  Petrel,  the  destination  of  the  Petrel  being 
China.  My  wife  and  I  agreed  that  she  should  sublet  our 
apartment  if  she  could,  and  join  me  in  California  or 
later  in  Japan. 

That  evening  about  nine  o'clock  I  noticed  that  a  lady 
and  gentleman,  sitting  in  the  section  opposite  mine,  had 
a  number  of  small  packages,  and  were  somewhat  embar 
rassed  by  them,  when  the  porter  came  to  make  up  the 
section.  So  I  said  to  the  man,  "Won't  you  sit  in  my  sec 
tion  while  yours  is  being  made  up?  I  '11  go  to  the  smok- 
ing-compartment. "  Later  that  evening  he  thanked  me, 
and  I  said : 

"Oh,  I  was  very  glad  to  help  you  out  a  little.  T  saw 
that  you  and  your  wife  seemed  to  be  somewhat  crowded 
with  your  baggage. ' ' 

' '  She  is  n  't  my  wife, ' '  he  answered ; ' '  she  's  my  sister. ' ' 

I  was  introduced  to  her  the  following  morning  as 
Mrs.  -  — .  During  the  forenoon  I  found  myself  talking 
with  her  at  one  of  the  stations  in  Canada,  and  she  thanked 
me  also.  I  said: 

"Oh,  I  told  your  brother  this  morning  that  I  was  very 
glad  to  do  you  that  little  service." 

"Why,  that  isn't  my  brother,"  said  Mrs. ;  "he  is 

only  a  friend." 

The  Petrel  was  put  into  commission  on  December  16, 
1896.  Our  work  of  getting  ready  for  sea  was  carried  on 
in  such  a  leisurely  fashion  that  we  did  not  leave  the 

223 


224     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAB-ADMIRAL 

navy-yard  until  the  latter  part  of  February,  and  after 
that  we  swung  around  our  anchor  in  San  Francisco  Bay, 
off  the  beautiful  and  picturesque  town  of  Sausalito,  till 
the  early  part  of  April.  We  looked  forward  to  three 
years  of  cruising  in  China  and  Japan,  just  as  other  ships 
had  been  doing  for  many  years,  and  to  nothing  else.  We 
did  not  know  that  we  were  to  take  a  part,  and  a  very 
prominent  part,  in  one  of  the  most  decisive  battles  ever 
fought.  In  fact,  even  as  late  as  the  latter  part  of  1897 
there  was  no  clear  idea  or  expectation  that  the  United 
States  would  ever  go  to  war  again.  The  same  feeling 
was  over  the  country  as  had  been  over  many  other  coun 
tries  at  different  stages  of  their  national  life — that  war 
was  "a  relic  of  barbarism,"  and  a  disease  for  which  the 
cure  had  been  found. 

My  wife  and  little  daughter  joined  me  at  Vallejo,  and 
we  lived  at  the  same  hotel  where  I  had  played  billiards 
as  a  midshipman  twenty-two  years  before.  Vallejo  did 
not  look  so  interesting  to  me  in  1897  as  it  had  in  1875. 
The  streets  seemed  narrower  and  muddier,  and  the  houses 
dingier.  But  the  same  wonderful  moonlight  appeared 
sometimes,  the  same  magnificent  range  of  mountains 
could  be  seen,  the  same  invigorating  air  could  be  breathed, 
and  the  same  startling  sunset  colors  appeared  behind 
Mount  Tamalpais,  and  were  reflected  in  red  and  gold  in 
the  waters  of  the  bay. 

Finally  the  little  Petrel  stood  bravely  out  of  the  Golden 
Gate  into  the  waters  of  the  Pacific.  A  southeast  gale  was 
blowing,  and  the  water  was  very  rough  on  the  bar.  The 
youngest  member  of  the  wardroom  mess  of  nine  was 
Assistant-Paymaster  Seibels  ("little  Georgie  Seibels," 
we  called  him) ,  who  had  just  entered  the  navy.  For  some 
reason  he  was  much  afraid  of  being  seasick,  and  our 
executive  officer,  Lieutenant  Hughes,  who  was  a  typical 
sea-dog,  would  amuse  himself  sometimes  by  giving  Sei 
bels  a  realistic  description  of  its  horrors.  When  the 
Petrel  started  over  the  bar,  she  began  such  a  series  of 
athletic  performances  that  Seibels  became  much  con- 


ON  THE  CHINA  STATION  225 

cerned.  But  Hughes  became  much  concerned  also,  for 
he  was  one  of  those  men  who  never  recover  wholly  from 
sea-sickness.  After  the  performance  had  been  going  on 
about  an  hour,  and  Hughes 's  face  had  acquired  a  pale 
green-yellow  tint,  Seibels,  smoking  a  big  pipe,  came  up 
to  him.  At  this  time  many  people  were  very  sick  indeed, 
but  Seibels  was  not.  He  was  so  concerned,  however, 
that  he  did  not  notice  anything  except  his  own  feelings, 
and  they  did  not  seem  especially  distressing.  Finally, 
after  about  an  hour  of  waiting  for  something  to  happen, 
and  not  noticing  any  signs  of  it,  he  went  up  to  Hughes, 
saluted  him,  and  said,  "  Excuse  me,  Mr.  Hughes,  but  will 
you  please  tell  me  when  a  man  begins  to  feel  sick  ? ' '  Poor 
Hughes  looked  at  the  ruddy  face  of  Seibels  and  the  big 
pipe,  and  smelt  the  nauseating  tobacco-smoke.  "Go 
— !"  he  said,  and  walked  unsteadily  to  his  room. 

I  had  my  sounding-machine  ready,  and  we  soon  began 
to  take  soundings  with  it.  The  quartermaster  on  the 
poop  would  pull  back  the  brake  with  a  lever  whenever 
I  raised  my  hand.  This  would  permit  the  drum  of  the 
machine  to  revolve,  and  the  wire  on  which  was  hung 
the  lead  to  unreel.  At  the  same  time  it  closed  an  electric 
circuit,  and  started  a  specially  constructed  clock,  which 
was  graduated  not  in  hours,  minutes,  and  seconds,  but  in 
fathoms  and  fractions  of  a  fathom,  and  which  I  had  in 
stalled  in  the  pilot-house.  When  the  wire  slackened, 
showing  that  the  lead  had  hit  the  bottom,  the  quarter 
master  would  let  go  the  lever.  This  would  let  a  stout 
spring  apply  the  brake  to  the  drum,  and  at  the  same  time 
open  the  electric  circuit  and  stop  the  clock.  Then  I  would 
read  the  depth  on  the  clock,  and  the  quartermaster  would 
reel  in  the  wire  again  in  readiness  to  take  the  next  sound 
ing. 

The  scheme  worked  perfectly ;  the  soundings  indicated 
exactly  what  the  chart  showed.  But  suddenly  the  wire 
broke.  This  was  an  unexpected  calamity  and  a  great 
one;  because  I  did  not  have  another  wire  with  which  to 
replace  it.  I  thought  I  could  get  one,  however,  in  Hono- 


226     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

lulu,  whither  we  were  bound.  When  we  got  there,  how 
ever,  I  could  not  find  any  wire  of  the  proper  kind,  and  I 
could  not  later  in  either  Japan  or  China.  From  an  un 
fortunate  combination  of  circumstances  I  was  not  able  to 
get  the  proper  kind  of  wire  until  late  in  the  year.  At 
that  time  we  were  in  inland  waters  near  Hong-Kong, 
and  I  could  not  get  any  chance  to  try  the  machine.  Then 
we  went  to  the  Battle  of  Manila,  and  I  had  to  take  the 
machine  off  the  deck  and  store  it  below.  Later,  I  was 
transferred  to  the  Monitor  Monadnock,  and  I  put  the 
sounding-machine  at  the  after  end  of  the  quarter-deck. 
Just  then  the  Filipino  War  broke  out.  Then  I  got  two 
quartermasters  with  hand-spikes,  and  they  shoved  the 
sounding-machine  overboard  into  the  waters  of  Manila 
Bay. 

This  was  the  end  of  a  machine  on  which  I  had  worked 
at  intervals  for  twelve  years.  I  have  occasionally  made 
up  my  mind  at  intervals  ever  since  to  undertake  again 
the  work  of  developing  it;  but  my  regular  duties  and 
other  inventions  and  undertakings  have  distracted  my  at 
tention  from  it.  One  cannot  develop  all  the  inventions 
which  his  mind  suggests.  I  wish  that  some  one  would 
develop  a  soundinsr-machine  which  depends  on  timing  the 
sinking  of  a  weight. 

A  pleasant  trip,  made  mostly  under  sail,  took  us  to 
Honolulu.  My  wife  and  daughter  had  preceded  me,  and 
I  found  them  at  the  Royal  Hawaiian  Hotel.  On  ap 
proaching  the  hotel,  I  looked  with  interest  at  the  steps 
whereon  I  had  slept  in  full-dress  uniform  twenty-two 
years  before. 

On  my  way  to  the  hotel  I  passed  a  lady  driving  on 
one  of  the  principal  streets,  whom  I  recognized  as  Mrs. 

— ,  who  had  been  in  the  same  car  with  me  on  the  trip 
from  New  York  to  San  Francisco.  She  was  very  polite 
to  my  wife  and  me,  and  invited  us  to  dinner  one  evening. 

My  wife  and  daughter  preceded  me  to  Yokohama,  and 
they  came  on  board  in  a  sampan  shortly  after  we  ar- 


ON  THE  CHINA  STATION  227 

rived.  They  were  charmed  with  Japan,  and,  as  I  found 
afterward,  with  good  reason.  They  were  comfortably 
established  at  the  Grand  Hotel,  and  the  shops  of  Yoko 
hama,  the  strange  costumes,  the  strange  customs,  the 
picturesque  scenery,  which  included  Fuji-yama  at  times, 
the  jinrikishas,  and  the  cheapness  of  everything,  com 
bined  to  make  a  delightful  living  place,  especially  in  the 
month  of  May,  which  was  the  month  of  our  arrival. 

During  the  time  of  our  stay  in  Yokohama  I  saw  there 
was  a  great  feeling  against  the  Japanese  held  by  the  Eng 
lish.  It  expressed  itself  in  many  ways  and  on  many 
occasions.  It  was  evidenced  by  very  harsh  criticisms  of 
the  actions  of  the  Japanese,  even  the  Japanese  of  the 
coolie  classes,  and  it  was  expressed  not  only  in  conversa 
tion,  but  in  the  newspapers.  One  curious  phase  of  this 
was  continual  ridicule  of  the  Japanese  for  "throwing 
away"  certain  moneys  which  they  had  received  after  their 
war  with  China.  The  most  extreme  predictions  were 
made  as  to  the  ruin  which  would  fall  on  Japan  because 
she  did  not  save  her  money  instead  of  squandering  it  on 
the  army  and  navy.  The  people  who  made  these  criti 
cisms  of  the  Japanese  were  important  business  men,  and 
it  seemed  strange  even  to  me  that  they  should  be  so  blind, 
when  it  was  perfectly  obvious  that  the  relations  between 
Great  Britain  and  Russia  were  so  strained  that  it  was 
to  the  advantage  of  the  English  that  Japan  should  be 
well  armed.  Only  seven  years  later  Japan  took  Great 
Britain's  job  of  thrashing  Russia,  and  used  for  that  pur 
pose  the  ships  which  were  purchased  with  the  money 
which  these  Englishmen  had  ridiculed  Japan  for  spend 
ing. 

In  the  latter  part  of  May  the  Petrel  started  on  a 
cruise  which  was  to  include  the  Inland  Sea  of  Japan, 
Chemulpo  in  Korea,  Chifu  in  northern  China,  Shang 
hai,  Fu-chau,  Swatow,  and  Hong-Kong. 

Our  cruise  through  the  Inland  Sea  was  delightful,  but 
I  shall  never  forget  one  foggy  night,  steaming  among 


228     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  rocks  that  guard  the  approaches  to  Nagasaki.  After 
a  few  days  there  we  went  to  Chemulpo,  where  we  arrived 
on  June  13,  1897,  my  forty-third  birthday. 

We  remained  in  Chemulpo  for  three  months,  a  very 
monotonous  three  months  indeed.  The  climate  was  mag 
nificent,  but  I  have  always  noticed  that  wherever  there 
is  a  good  climate,  there  is  nothing  else  that  is  good. 
People  seem  to  prefer  bad  climates,  as  is  shown  by  the 
fact  that  every  great  city  in  the  world  is  in  a  bad  climate, 
or  at  best  a  climate  far  from  good.  The  scenery  from 
our  anchorage  included  long  stretches  of  clear  blue  water 
and  rugged  hills  and  mountains  in  all  directions.  I  do 
not  think  I  have  seen  such  clear  air  anywhere  else  as  in 
Korea.  The  town  itself  was  of  that  kind  of  interesting- 
ness  which  anything  having  a  distinct  and  peculiar  char 
acter  possesses;  but  after  one  day's  acquaintance  with 
it,  interest  ceased  altogether,  so  essentially  uninteresting 
was  it. 

There  is  a  tremendous  rise  and  fall  of  tide  at  Chemulpo. 
When  the  tide  was  high,  it  went  up  to  the  water-front  of 
the  city,  and  the  city  looked  rather  picturesque  from  the 
ship;  but  when  the  tide  was  low,  the  edge  of  the  water 
was  virtually  a  mile  from  the  city,  and  immense  areas 
of  yellow  mud  were  disclosed.  When  one  landed,  he 
had  to  walk  up  a  considerable  hill  toward  the  town,  along 
a  steep  road  which  was  always  well  filled  with  laborers 
and  beggars.  I  have  never  seen  men  carry  such  tre 
mendous  loads  as  in  Chemulpo.  Each  laborer  had 
strapped  on  his  back  a  kind  of  contrivance  such  as  a 
chair  would  be,  if  it  were  strapped  on  a  man's  back, 
with  the  back  of  the  chair  and  the  rear  legs  in  contact 
with  his  body.  The  load  was  placed  just  where  it  is  in 
a  chair.  I  do  not  remember  now  what  weights  they 
carried,  but  I  think  I  am  correct  in  saying  that  an 
American  merchant  told  us  at  mess  one  evening  that 
a  few  days  before  a  laborer  had  carried  five  hundred 
pounds  from  the  water-front  to  the  town  up  the  hill 
a  distance  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile. 


ON  THE  CHINA  STATION  229 

During  our  three  months'  stay  at  Chemulpo  we  got  into 
the  habit  of  going  ashore  Saturday  afternoon  and 
walking  about  the  town.  This  was  our  only  diversion 
there,  for  the  political  conditions  were  such  that  trips 
into  the  interior  were  not  advisable,  and  swimming  was 
too  dangerous  on  account  of  the  swift  tidal  currents. 

But  one  afternoon  the  captain,  the  paymaster,  and  I 
proceeded  in  the  captain's  gig  to  a  cove  about  a  mile 
away,  where  the  water  had  very  little  current.  Before 
going,  we  put  on  our  bathing-trunks  under  our  clothes, 
so  that  we  could  disrobe  in  the  gig  and  jump  into  the 
water.  This  part  of  our  program  worked  very  well, 
and  we  had  a  delightful  swim ;  but  suddenly  a  tremendous 
rain-storm  came  up,  without  any  previous  indication 
whatever,  and  immediately  drenched  the  clothes  we  had 
left  in  the  boat.  The  rain  was  a  cold  one,  brought  up 
by  a  cold  wind.  Our  plight  was  uncomfortable  and 
ridiculous.  We  stayed  in  the  water,  which  was  warm, 
waiting  for  the  cold  wind  and  rain  to  pass  by.  But 
after  we  had  stayed  in  the  water  until  we  were  tired, 
and  saw  that  the  wind  and  rain  had  no  intention  of 
stopping,  we  made  up  our  minds  to  get  back  to  the 
ship  as  best  we  could.  So  we  crawled  into  the  gig  in 
our  bathing-costumes,  and  the  men  "gave  way"  with  a 
will  while  the  captain,  navigator,  and  paymaster  crouched 
in  the  stern  of  the  boat,  virtually  naked,  shivering  in  the 
cold  wind  and  rain,  which  continued  to  pelt  us.  We  got 
alongside  of  the  ship  just  as  the  supper-hour  was  over, 
and  all  the  men  were  congregated  about  the  deck  under 
the  awnings.  Certainly  we  created  an  undignified  and 
ludicrous  appearance  as  we  came  over  the  side  to  the 
deck  and  ran  aft.  The  captain  led,  weighing  about  120 
pounds;  the  navigator  followed,  weighing  about  130 
pounds;  and  the  paymaster  followed,  weighing  200 
pounds.  A  little  titter  went  from  the  men  at  first,  which 
finally  burst  into  an  uncontrollable  guffaw. 

One  day  The  Scientific  American  came  on  board,  con 
taining  an  article  of  great  interest  to  me,  which  an- 


230     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

nounced  the  discovery  of  a  simple  appliance  that  made 
possible  the  attainment  of  what  many  people,  of  whom  I 
was  one,  had  been  attempting — wireless  telegraphy.  The 
Scientific  American  described  and  illustrated  this  ap 
pliance,  later  called  "Bramly's  Coherer,"  the  resistance 
of  which  was  instantly  reduced  by  being  hit  by  a  Hertzian 
wave,  but  which  could  be  restored  at  once  by  a  slight  tap. 
After  reading  the  description,  it  occurred  to  me  at  once 
that  by  sending  out  Hertzian  waves  of  different  fre 
quencies,  different  apparatus  at  a  distance,  having  vibra 
tion  periods  equal  to  those  of  the  waves,  could  be  oper 
ated.  It  also  struck  me  that,  if  only  two  different  in 
struments  at  a  distance  were  used,  it  would  be  easy  to 
operate  either  one  at  will  without  interfering  with  the 
other  one.  As  I  was  one  of  the  few  officers  of  the  navy 
then  who  believed  in  the  torpedo,  I  thought  I  saw  a  way 
of  overcoming  the  principal  difficulty  with  a  torpedo — 
the  difficulty  of  making  it  go  straight  in  a  horizontal 
plane.  So  I  sketched  out  that  afternoon  a  simple  elec 
trical  scheme,  which  is,  I  believe,  at  the  bottom  of  all 
the  schemes  for  using  wireless  telegraph  for  directing 
distant  objects,  that  have  been  proposed  and  used  since 
then. 

I  sent  this  diagram  with  an  appropriate  description 
and  a  letter  to  Mr.  Thayer,  manager  of  the  Western 
Electric  Company  in  New  York,  saying  that  if  the  West 
ern  Electric  Company  would  patent  this  in  my  name,  I 
would  assign  the  patent  to  the  company  on  any  reason 
able  agreement;  and  adding  that,  while  it  was  some 
what  ahead  of  the  times,  yet,  nevertheless,  there  was 
in  it,  I  thought,  the  possibility  of  considerable  future 
usefulness. 

About  three  months  later  I  got  an  answer  from  Mr. 
Thayer  to  the  effect  that  he  had  submitted  my  proposi 
tion  to  Mr.  Barton,  the  president  of  the  company,  and 
that  Mr.  Barton  had  replied  that,  while  the  Western 
Electric  Company  was  very  desirous  of  advancing  the 
applications  of  science,  and  especially  its  applications  to 


ON  THE  CHINA  STATION  231 

the  navy,  yet  that  this  particular  proposition  of  mine 
seemed  a  little  too  far  beyond  practicability  to  warrant 
spending  any  money  on  it.  This  answer  was  not  unex 
pected,  and  I  had  so  much  confidence  in  the  judgment  of 
Mr.  Thayer  and  Mr.  Barton  that  I  gave  up  my  notion. 

In  the  following  June,  about  a  month  after  the  Bat 
tle  of  Manila,  I  got  a  letter  from  Mr.  Thayer,  saying 
that  on  the  second  of  May  he  had  received  a  telephone 
message  from  Mr.  Barton,  in  Chicago,  telling  him  to 
take  out  the  patent  for  Lieutenant  Fiske  and  to  do  any 
thing  else  that  Lieutenant  Fiske  wanted  him  to  do.  So 
I  prepared  a  patent  application  and  other  papers,  and 
sent  them  to  the  United  States.  When  I  got  back  to 
New  York  in  February,  1900,  I  found  that  the  applica 
tion  had  not  yet  been  granted,  but  that  a  patent  had 
been  granted  to  Nikola  Tesla  for  a  virtually  identical 
scheme.  Correspondence  with  the  Patent  Office  dis 
closed  the  curious  fact,  which  the  Patent  Office  admitted, 
that  they  had  made  the  mistake  of  issuing  a  patent  to 
Tesla  while  another  application  for  the  same  thing  was 
being  considered  in  the  office.  The  Western  Electric  at 
torneys  finally  made  an  arrangement  with  the  Patent 
Office  whereby  I  was  granted  a  patent  that  underlay 
Tesla 's,  although  of  a  later  date. 

My  patent  was  dated  October  23,  1900,  and  expired 
October  23, 1917.  During  all  the  seventeen  years  I  never 
saw  my  way  clear  to  applying  it  in  practice,  not  because 
I  did  not  see  my  way  to  applying  it  to  steering  one 
torpedo  or  vessel,  but  because  I  did  not  see  my  way  clear 
to  applying  it  to  steering  several  simultaneously.  Dur 
ing  those  seventeen  years,  I  saw  scores  of  notices  of 
people  inventing  the  scheme,  sometimes  in  the  United 
States  and  sometimes  in  Europe ;  occasionally  I  was  men 
tioned  as  the  inventor,  but  usually  somebody  else.  The 
only  man  I  know  of  who  has  really  accomplished  any 
thing  in  this  line  is  John  Hays  Hammond,  Jr.  I  have 
always  given  Mr.  Hammond  a  great  deal  of  credit,  both  in 
private  conversation  and  letters  and  in  print,  for  the 


232     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAE-ADMIEAL 

excellent  work  that  he  has  done,  but  I  do  not  know  of 
Mr.  Hammond  ever  giving  me  credit  for  having  sug 
gested  the  plan  originally,  or  of  his  disclaiming  the 
credit  given  him  for  it  in  many  accounts  of  his  achieve 
ments. 

One  morning  we  were  extremely  surprised  by  the  ar 
rival  of  three  German  men-of-war.  We  were  not  sur 
prised  so  much  by  their  arriving  as  by  the  fact  that 
they  arrived  so  early  as  to  show  that  they  must  have 
come  up  the  long  and  dangerous  approach  to  Chemulpo 
during  the  night.  At  this  time  the  German  Navy  was 
not  highly  regarded.  In  fact,  it  was  rarely  thought  of; 
but  this  performance  startled  us  into  a  recognition  of 
the  fact  that  the  German  Navy  must  be  of  a  high  order 
of  efficiency,  for  otherwise  this  act  would  not  have  been 
performed  or  even  attempted.  Each  of  these  ships  was 
much  larger  than  the  Petrel,  and  yet  we  had  been  care 
ful  to  come  up  by  daylight  and  with  the  greatest  circum 
spection.  I  noticed  also  that  the  German  ships  had 
on  their  topmasts  a  system  of  signals  almost  identical 
with  the  one  that  I  had  completed  just  before  I  left 
home,  and  which  had  been  put  into  the  New  York,  ex 
cept  that  it  had  three  pairs  of  arms  instead  of  four. 

Since  that  morning  in  Chemulpo,  when  those  three 
ships  met  my  astonished  gaze,  I  have  kept  my  eye  on 
the  German  Navy. 

During  our  stay  in  Chemulpo  my  wife  and  little  daugh 
ter  had  been  living  in  Yokohama,  with  occasional  trips 
to  Tokio,  Kioto,  Nikko,  and  other  charming  places.  As 
my  wife  was  a  pianist  and  my  daughter  a  violinist,  they 
naturally  drifted  into  the  musical  set,  and  took  part  in 
many  concerts.  On  one  occasion  the  little  girl  played  two 
solos  in  a  public  hall  for  a  charitable  purpose,  besides 
playing  an  obbligato  for  Mr.  Morse,  who  was  then  the 
favorite  tenor  in  China  and  Japan. 

About  the  first  of  September  they  left  Yokohama,  and 
after  a  delightful  trip  through  the  Inland  Sea  arrived  at 
Chemulpo.  I  met  the  steamer  with  the  whaleboat  of  the 


ON  THE  CHINA  STATION  233 

Petrel,  and  took  them  ashore.  I  steered  the  whaleboat 
myself  on  the  trip  in,  and  became  so  much  interested 
in  conversation  with  them  that  I  ran  the  boat  aground. 
As  I  was  the  navigator  of  a  United  States  vessel,  this 
was  almost  disgraceful,  and  I  heard  good-natured  refer 
ences  to  it  afterwards  from  time  to  time  from  members 
of  the  wardroom  mess.  I  was  able  to  back  the  boat  off, 
however,  and  to  get  my  wife  and  daughter  to  the  Hotel 
Dai  Butsu.  They  stayed  there  for  perhaps  a  week,  and 
my  wife  has  often  since  declared  that  the  Hotel  Dai 
Butsu  was  the  worst  hotel  in  the  world. 

At  that  time  the  Koreans  had  the  reputation  of  being 
the  most  abject  cowards  living.  One  night  Dr.  Brownell, 
Ensign  Fermier,  and  I  went  to  the  British  consul's  resi 
dence,  where  there  was  a  small  entertainment  because 
of  the  birthday  of  the  queen.  While  we  were  walking 
back  to  the  boat  we  were  followed  by  a  crowd  of  Koreans. 
This  became  annoying  after  a  while,  and  Fermier  said, 
"I  '11  stop  this."  Then  he  turned  around  quickly, 
stretched  out  both  arms,  and  ran  at  them  shouting  some 
thing  emphatic;  whereon  the  whole  crowd  ran  off  in  all 
directions.  Shortly  afterward  my  wife  and  daughter 
were  followed  by  a  crowd  of  Koreans  in  Seoul,  the  capital 
of  Korea;  but  as  soon  as  she  turned  round  and  brand 
ished  her  parasol  at  them,  they  ran  away.  About  that 
time  an  Englishman  went  on  board  a  small  steamer  at 
Seoul  in  a  sampan,  or  little  boat.  He  paid  the  boatman 
something,  but  the  boatman  protested.  The  English 
man  went  on  board,  stood  on  the  starboard  side  of  the 
steamer,  and  listened  to  the  boatman,  who  held  on  to  the 
side,  with  his  face  level  with  the  deck.  Standing  along 
side  of  himself  on  deck,  the  Englishman  saw  a  Japanese : 
and  as  he  could  not  understand  the  boatman,  he  asked  the 
Japanese  to  translate  for  him.  The  Japanese  said  it 
was  not  necessary,  and  kicked  the  boatman  in  the  mouth. 
The  boatman  made  no  further  protest,  and  pulled  his  boat 
ashore. 

I  had  been  having  trouble  with  an  ingrowing  nail  on 


234     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAB-ADMIEAL 

my  left  big  toe  since  1875,  when  I  tried  to  wear  a  pair 
of  shoes  as  small  as  Dorn's.  Our  surgeon,  Dr.  Brownell, 
had  been  casting  greedy  looks  in  the  direction  of  my 
toe  for  a  long  while;  and  now,  having  little  else  with 
which  to  amuse  himself,  he  made  a  determined  attack 
on  me,  to  which  I  finally  succumbed.  So  he  took  a  hypo 
dermic  needle,  and  injected  some  cocaine  into  my  toe, 
and  then  began  to  cut.  I  sat  propped  up  in  my  bunk, 
and  watched  him  cut  down  through  the  nail  and  into  the 
toe,  and  then  cut  from  another  place  at  an  angle  to  the 
first  cut,  and  pull  out  part  of  my  toe  and  exactly  half 
the  nail.  I  watched  him  do  this  as  I  would  watch  a 
grocer  cut  into  a  piece  of  cheese,  and  with  just  as  much 
pain,  but  no  more.  When  he  came  to  sew  it  up,  though, 
there  was  considerable  pain.  The  pain  passed  away 
soon,  and  left  me  with  an  extraordinary  desire  to  write 
a  story,  the  plot  of  which  came  to  me  with  the  cocaine. 
So  I  sat  up  in  my  little  bunk,  with  a  pad  of  paper  and 
a  lead-pencil,  and  by  the  light  that  came  in  through  my 
little  round  port  wrote  at  the  top  of  the  page: 

THE  EXPLOSION  OF  MR.  JOHN  ASHBURTON 

I  was  sitting  one  evening  in  the  billiard-room  of  the  Grand 
Hotel  watching  a  game  of  billiards  between  Mr.  John  Ashburton 
and  his  nephew  George.  Mr.  Ashburton  had  got  the  balls  to 
gether  in  a  corner,  and  was  about  to  make  a  masse-shot,  when  he 
suddenly  exploded.  I  saw  him  tilt  forward  to  the  table,  and 
then  roll  off  sidewise  to  the  floor. 

I  completed  the  first  chapter  that  afternoon  in  my 
bunk;  and  for  some  time  afterward,  when  we  had  com 
pany  on  board  from  shore,  the  mess  would  get  me  to  read 
the  first  chapter  aloud.  The  first  chapter  was  not  wholly 
devoid  of  novelty,  but  I  have  never  been  able  yet  to  write 
any  succeeding  chapters  pitched  in  the  same  key.  Pos 
sibly  the  reason  is  that  I  have  not  had  any  more  toe-nails 
cut  out. 

We  left  Chemulpo  in  the  middle  of  September,  and  went 
to  Chifu,  in  northern  China,  my  wife  and  daughter  go- 


ON  THE  CHINA  STATION  235 

ing  about  the  same  time  in  a  merchant  steamer  with 
Mrs.  Wood,  wife  of  Lieutenant  Wood  of  the  Petrel. 
After  a  stay  of  about  a  week  in  Chifu,  the  Petrel  went 
south  to  Shanghai,  and  my  wife  and  daughter  went  north 
to  Tientsin. 

My  wife  and  daughter  went  from  Tientsin  to  Peking, 
and  from  Peking  to  the  Great  Wall.  They  traveled  in  big 
red  carts  called  "Peking-carts,"  which  had  no  springs. 
As  the  roads  were  very  rough,  the  absence  of  springs 
was  deplorable;  in  fact,  the  whole  journey  up  to  the 
Wall  and  back  to  Tientsin  was  exceedingly  uncomfortable 
and  exceedingly  adventurous.  They  finally  got  back 
safe,  however,  and  reached  Shanghai  while  the  Petrel 
was  still  there. 

The  Petrel  remained  in  Shanghai  until  November,  and 
then  went  south.  At  this  time  there  was  a  great  deal  of 
musical  activity  in  Shanghai,  and  "Mrs.  Fiske  and  Miss 
Fiske"  appeared  on  most  of  the  programs  of  the  vari 
ous  concerts  given.  The  little  girl  was  declared  to  be 
a  great  violinist,  and  a  splendid  future  was  predicted 
for  her. 

On  the  way  south  the  Petrel  stopped  at  Swatow.  One 
evening  the  captain  and  officers  were  invited  to  a  din 
ner  given  by  the  "American  consul,"  who  was  really  the 
German  consul,  but  in  charge  of  the  American  consulate. 
We  did  not  want  to  go  at  all,  but  the  captain  ordered  us 
to  go,  which  is  the  regular  procedure  in  such  circum 
stances,  and  so  we  had  to  go.  The  weather  was  not 
pleasant,  and  we  expected  a  poor  dinner  and  a  stupid 
company.  We  found  about  a  dozen  men  and  a  dozen 
ladies,  perfectly  dressed,  and  we  were  soon  ushered  into 
a  large  dining-room,  where  there  was  a  table  covered 
with  bright  flowers  and  beautiful  china  and  handsome 
silverware,  while  the  room  was  lined  with  Chinese  serv 
ants  in  costume.  We  declared  to  ourselves  later  that 
this  was  the  most  thoroughly  delightful  and  perfect  din 
ner  that  we  had  ever  attended.  Nothing  could  have  been 
more  perfect  in  the  matter  of  appointments,  variety,  ex- 


236     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAK-ADMIKAL 

cellence  of  cooking  and  attendance,  than  that  dinner. 
Every  kind  of  wine  seemed  to  be  at  the  temperature  at 
which  it  was  the  most  delicious,  and  there  were  as  many 
waiters  as  there  were  seats  at  table.  The  waiters,  or 
"boys,"  as  they  were  called,  were  under  the  "number 
one  boy,"  or  head  waiter,  a  magnificent  creature  in  a 
magnificent  dress. 

The  next  evening  we  were  invited  to  a  men's  dinner, 
given  by  one  of  the  merchants  in  town  at  his  residence. 
The  paymaster  and  surgeon  and  I  were  to  leave  with 
the  captain  in  the  captain's  gig  at  half  past  six.  But 
when  our  afternoon  boat  came  back  from  shore  to  the  ship 
at  six  o'clock,  the  paymaster  was  not  in  it;  and  as  it 
would  be  a  crime  for  him  to  be  late  for  the  gig  at  half 
past  six,  some  of  us  went  to  his  room  and  got  all  his 
clothes  ready,  so  that  he  could  get  into  them  quickly 
when  he  should  finally  arrive  on  board.  He  came  along 
side  at  exactly  twenty  minutes  after  six,  standing  up  in 
his  sampan  as  he  neared  the  ship,  in  evident  realization  of 
his  tardiness.  The  Petrel  was  rolling  a  good  deal,  and 
as  Seibels  tried  to  get  out  on  the  gangway,  he  missed  his 
footing  in  his  excitement,  and  fell  overboard,  though  still 
holding  on  to  the  gangway.  The  roll  back  of  the  Petrel 
brought  him  above  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  then  we 
seized  him  and  hustled  him  below.  Then  we  all  un 
dressed  him,  rubbed  him  down  with  a  towel,  and  dressed 
him ;  and  so  skilfully  did  we  do  our  work  that  at  exactly 
half  past  six  Mr.  Seibels  appeared  on  deck,  perfectly 
dressed  in  his  uniform  evening  costume. 

We  had  a  pleasant  dinner,  and  at  its  conclusion  we 
went  to  a  large  room,  where  there  was  a  piano.  After 
we  had  seated  ourselves,  the  host  said,  "The  next  thing 
on  the  program  is  a  song,  sung,  unfortunately,  by  my 
self."  Then  he  sang  a  song,  and  he  sang  it  so  badly  that 
everybody  afterward  felt  encouraged  to  sing  himself 
when  his  turn  came.  So  different  men  sang  songs  in  dif 
ferent  languages,  and  the  evening  slipped  pleasantly 
away. 


ON  THE  CHINA  STATION  237 

We  found  Hong-Kong  a  very  beautiful  place  indeed; 
not  the  city  itself,  which  is  called  Victoria,  but  the  bay 
and  the  islands  and  the  mountains  and  the  general  view 
wherever  the  eye  could  reach.  We  spent  Christmas 
there,  and  I  remember  going  with  my  wife  and  daughter 
to  a  splendid  service  in  the  cathedral,  and  seeing  on  the 
left  side  of  the  chancel,  in  pews  reserved  for  officials,  a 
dozen  or  more  British  naval  officers  in  uniform. 

While  in  Hong-Kong  two  German  naval  lieutenants 
dined  with  us  in  the  Petrel.  As  the  executive  officer  was 
on  shore,  I  sat  at  the  head  of  the  wardroom-table,  with 
one  of  these  officers  on  each  side.  While  they  were  very 
rude  in  talking  to  each  other  in  German,  which  they  knew 
I  did  not  understand,  they  were,  despite  that  fact,  very 
interesting  and  agreeable,  and  displayed  a  knowledge  of 
the  scientific  part  of  the  naval  profession  which  I  had 
never  seen  equaled  by  any  American  naval  officers  in  a 
casual  conversation  on  board  ship.  My  judgment  in  this 
matter  may  have  been  somewhat  impaired  by  the  fact 
that  this  knowledge  consisted  in  part  of  an  accurate 
knowledge  of  my  own  inventions,  and  was  accompanied 
by  an  intelligent  interest  in  them.  One  fact  that  they 
told  me  roused  me  greatly,  and  that  was  the  fact  that 
in  the  German  Navy  they  tried  to  utilize  every  man's 
peculiar  gifts.  For  instance,  if  a  man  had  an  aptitude 
for  mechanics  or  invention,  they  encouraged  him  in  every 
way  to  work  along  the  line  of  his  ability,  but  to  devote 
the  results  of  it  to  naval  excellence.  Such  a  man,  for 
instance,  would  always  be  employed  on  shore  in  working 
at  his  specialty,  and  when  he  went  to  sea,  would  be  sent 
to  a  ship  in  which  he  could  carry  on  his  work  in  some 
degree,  and  yet  keep  in  touch  with  the  practical  work  of 
the  navy  as  a  whole ;  so  that  he  would  not  stray  to  paths 
outside  of  naval  work,  and  his  judgment  would  remain 
good  as  to  the  best  naval  lines  along  which  to  prosecute 
his  special  work. 

This  conversation  startled  me  as  much  as  did  the 
episode  at  Chemulpo,  when  the  German  squadron  came 


238     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

up  by  night.  The  former  instance  had  shown  practical, 
seamanlike  skill ;  the  incident  of  this  conversation  showed 
a  foresight  on  the  part  of  the  German  Navy  Depart 
ment  that  I  knew  to  be  wholly  lacking  in  our  Navy  De 
partment,  and  suspected  to  be  lacking  in  the  British  and 
French  Navy  Departments.  And  when,  after  the  Bat 
tle  of  Manila,  I  saw  what  large  numbers  of  German  naval 
officers  visited  the  wrecks  of  the  Spanish  ships,  and 
noted  the  length  of  time  they  stayed  on  board,  I  came 
to  the  conviction  that  the  German  Navy  was  going  to  be 
as  efficient  as  the  German  Army,  if  it  was  not  already 
so;  and  that  the  time  was  coming,  if  it  had  not  already 
come,  when  the  German  Navy  would  be  the  most  effi 
cient  navy  in  the  world,  even  if  it  were  not  the  largest. 
From  Hong-Kong  we  went  to  Canton,  about  seventy 
miles  away.  More  strictly  speaking,  we  went  to  Shamien, 
a  little  island  separated  from  Canton  by  a  stream  that 
was  so  narrow  at  one  point  that  it  was  crossed  by  a 
bridge,  which  was  pulled  up  at  night  on  the  island  end, 
and  let  down  the  following  morning.  The  island  was 
extremely  small  and  flat;  not  very  much  larger,  as  I 
recollect  it,  than  an  uptown  city  block  in  New  York. 
Here  resided  a  great  many  silk  merchants  and  others, 
mostly  from  Europe,  some  married  and  some  bachelors. 
Living  there  must  have  been  very  dull  most  the  time, 
but  we  brought  a  little  variety.  Life  was  pleasant,  how 
ever,  even  if  it  was  dull,  and  we  had  never  seen  better 
dinner  parties  anywhere.  Being  at  Canton,  the  china, 
of  course,  was  perfect,  and  so  was  the  service,  and  so 
was  the  silver,  and  so  were  the  silks ;  and  as  Hong-Kong 
was  a  free  port,  there  was  no  duty  on  wines,  and  the 
best  wines  were  to  be  got  at  moderate  expense.  The  net 
result  of  all  these  conditions,  combined  with  the  facts 
that  the  people  had  abundance  of  leisure,  and  that  going 
to  dinners  and  giving  dinners  was  almost  the  only  amuse 
ment,  raised  the  art  of  dining  and  giving  dinners  to  the 
position  of  a  fine  art,  and  made  the  people  of  Shamien 
well  skilled  therein. 


239 

The  residents  whom  we  came  to  know  the  best  were 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Drew.  Mr.  Drew  was  the  head  of  the 
Chinese  customs  in  the  south  of  China,  and  a  Harvard 
graduate.  Four  years  afterward,  when  we  were  living 
in  New  York,  my  wife  saw  a  telegram  from  San  Francisco 
in  the  paper,  saying  that  Mrs.  Drew  had  arrived  in  San 
Francisco,  and  had  given  a  heartbreaking  description 
to  the  newspaper  interviewers  of  the  atrocities  com 
mitted  by  the  Chinese  at  the  time  of  the  Boxer  Rebellion. 
A  week  later  we  saw  a  telegram  from  Boston,  saying  that 
Mrs.  Drew  had  denied  to  some  interviewers  there  that 
she  had  said  any  such  things  to  newspaper  men  in  San 
Francisco  as  the  papers  had  described  her  as  saying.  A 
few  days  later  my  daughter  got  a  letter  from  Kathleen 
Drew,  saying  that  her  mother  had  had  no  interview 
whatever  with  any  reporters  in  San  Francisco  or  Boston 
or  any  other  place,  or  said  anything  whatever  to  any 
newspaper  representative  anywhere. 

In  March,  1898,  when  war  with  Spain  seemed  im 
minent,  The  Electrical  Engineer,  in  its  issue  of  March 
10,  published  an  editorial  on  my  lecture  before  the  Elec 
trical  Society  in  1890,  on  "The  Civilian  Electrician  in 
Modern  War,"  and  advocated  carrying  out  my  recom 
mendations.  This  was  taken  up  by  other  newspapers, 
notably  the  New  York  Evening  Post,  and  resulted  in  en 
rollment  of  a  volunteer  corps  of  a  thousand  men  under 
Eugene  Griffin,  vice-president  of  the  General  Electric 
Company,  an  ex-officer  of  engineers  of  the  army  who  had 
graduated  at  the  head  of  his  class  at  West  Point.  As  I 
was  at  Manila  during  all  of  the  Spanish  War,  I  do  not 
know  how  much  real  work  this  organization  did,  but  I 
do  know  that  the  organization  was  the  basis  for  much  of 
the  preparatory  work  of  our  electricians  and  engineers  in 
the  early  part  of  the  great  world  war. 

In  the  early  part  of  April  there  was  a  good  deal  in 
the  Hong-Kong  newspapers  about  a  possible  war  be 
tween  the  United  States  and  Spain.  None  of  us  believed 
that  it  really  meant  war;  we  could  not  imagine  such  a 


240     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

thing  as  the  United  States  getting  actually  into  war. 
During  all  the  time  that  we  had  been  in  China,  Great 
Britain  and  Russia  were  supposed  to  be  on  the  verge  of 
war.  The  British  ships  dogged  the  Russian  ships  wher 
ever  they  went,  and  at  one  time  war  seemed  so  very 
near  that  I  made  application  to  Washington  for  orders  as 
observer  on  either  the  British  or  the  Russian  side.  We 
held  about  the  same  idea  regarding  the  United  States 
getting  into  war  that  a  person  holds  about  dying — a 
thing  possible  only  to  others. 

On  February  15,  1898,  the  Maine  was  sunk  in  Havana 
Harbor,  and  the  probability  of  war  increased,  but  not 
to  the  proportions  of  a  certainty  in  our  estimation. 
Then  Commodore  Dewey  came  down  from  the  north  and 
collected  all  the  squadron  in  Hong-Kong  Bay.  His 
ships  were  the  Olympia  (flag-ship),  the  Baltimore,  the 
Boston,  the  Concord,  the  Raleigh,  and  the  Petrel.  Be 
sides  these,  the  revenue-cutter  McCullough  joined  his 
flag,  and  he  bought  the  collier  Nanshan  loaded  with  coal. 
Finally,  on  April  26,  war  was  declared  just  as  we  were 
finishing  painting  the  ships  war  color,  and  the  governor 
of  Hong-Kong  ordered  us  to  leave  the  harbor,  because 
we  were  then  belligerents. 

So  Commodore  Dewey  got  the  squadron  under  way, 
and  proceeded  to  Mirs  Bay,  about  ten  miles  distant.  In 
Mirs  Bay  we  were  not  in  British  territory,  but  in  Chi 
nese  territory.  China  did  not  order  us  to  leave  Mirs 
Bay,  and  she  would  not  have  been  able  to  make  us  leave 
if  she  had  done  so. 


CHAPTEE  XVI 

THE   BATTLE    OF    MANILA 

Note.  This  chapter  and  those  succeeding  that  concern  the  Philippines 
are  taken  from  my  book  "War  Time  in  Manila,"  and  are  printed  here  with 
the  kind  permission  of  its  publisher,  Mr.  Richard  G.  Badger,  of  Boston. 

WHEN  the  American  fleet  under  Commodore 
Dewey  left  Hong-Kong  on  April  25,  1898,  and 
went  to  Mirs  Bay,  we  did  not  even  then  feel  sure  that 
there  would  be  war.  Many  of  us  thought  that  war 
would  be  averted  at  the  last  moment,  and  some  made 
bets  to  that  effect.  But  on  the  evening  of  April  25  the 
captains  were  called  on  board  the  flagship  by  signal,  and 
we  on  board  the  Petrel  felt  that  when  the  captain  re 
turned  he  would  bring  to  us  definite  news  of  war  or  peace. 
We  sat  on  the  port  side  of  the  quarter-deck  and  talked 
for  the  most  part  on  irrelevant  matters,  though  probably 
every  one  was  thinking  of  the  news  which  would  come  in 
a  very  short  time.  At  last  we  heard  the  call  of  the  sentry 
and  then  the  plash  of  oars.  The  captain  came  over  the 
side  with  his  brisk  step,  and  walked  quickly  aft  on  the 
quarter-deck  and,  seeing  us  on  the  port  side,  thrust  out 
his  hand,  in  which  was  a  telegram,  and  said,  "Gentle 
men,  it  is  war." 

Next  morning  we  were  ready  very  early  to  get  under 
way,  but  the  steamer  with  the  American  consul  from 
Manila  did  not  come  until  the  forenoon  of  the  twenty- 
seventh  was  well  advanced,  so  that  it  was  about  midday 
when  we  moved  from  Mirs  Bay  in  column,  headed  to  the 
southward  and  eastward. 

Probably  the  principal  thing  remembered  about  the 
trip  to  Manila  by  most  of  the  people  in  the  American 
column  is  the  enormous  quantity  of  woodwork  flung  over 
board  by  the  ships.  It  seemed  as  if  the  Baltimore,  for 

241 


242     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIRAL 

instance,  never  could  possibly  have  held  the  amount  of 
woodwork  she  threw  over,  and  yet  it  was  a  common  re 
mark  among  officers  who  went  on  board  the  Baltimore 
after  the  battle  that  the  woodwork  was  hardly  missed, 
except  the  fore  and  aft  bulkheads  in  the  wardroom.  In 
looking  back  on  this  little  trip,  which  occupied  about  three 
days,  I  am  struck  with  the  fact  that  everybody  seemed 
to  take  the  matter  lightly,  and,  except  for  an  occasional 
remark,  the  conversation  was  such  as  is  usual  on  ship 
board;  and  it  was  not  until  a  sudden  screech  and  boom 
about  midnight  of  the  morning  of  May  1  that  we  real 
ized  that  this  was  war. 

The  afternoon  of  April  30  was  spent  in  skirting  the 
west  coast  of  Luzon  Island  toward  the  entrance  of  Subig 
Bay  and  in  watching  for  the  Spanish  vessels.  The  Bos 
ton  and  Concord  went  ahead  of  the  fleet  to  the  opening 
of  Subig  Bay,  and  came  out  reporting  that  no  Spanish 
ships  were  there.  Before  dark  the  captains  were  called 
on  board  the  flag-ship  for  the  last  consultation.  They 
soon  returned  to  their  ships,  and  the  fleet,  formed  in 
column  at  distance,  stood  toward  the  entrance  of  Manila 
Bay,  about  sixty  miles  away. 

As  darkness  slowly  descended,  the  scene  took  on  a 
character  at  once  soothing  and  disturbing — soothing,  be 
cause  everything  was  so  beautiful  and  so  calm ;  disturb 
ing,  because  of  the  grim  preparations  evident.  The  guns 
were  all  ready,  considerable  ammunition  was  on  deck, 
and  the  men  lay  or  sat  or  stood  by  their  guns.  As  few 
lamps  as  possible  were  lit,  and  all  lights  which  would 
shine  outward  were  screened,  except  one  small  light  over 
the  stern  of  each  ship.  The  night  was  clear  and  calm, 
and  the  hours  from  eight  to  twelve  rather  dragged. 
There  was  nothing  to  do,  for  all  preparations  had  been 
made ;  there  was  nothing  to  see  except  the  dim  outlines 
of  a  few  ships  and  the  vague  outline  of  the  coast  two  or 
three  miles  distant;  and  there  was  nothing  to  hear  ex 
cept  the  sound  of  the  engine  and  the  swish  of  the  water 
along  the  sides. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  MANILA  243 

At  half-past  eleven,  just  as  the  fleet  was  about  to 
head  into  Manila  Bay,  the  McCulloch  (revenue-cutter) 
threw  out  a  flame  from  her  smokestack.  Instantly  a 
rocket  shot  into  the  air  from  Corregidor  Island,  showing 
that  the  flame  had  been  seen  and  the  fleet  discovered.  We 
realized  the  fact  that  this  meant  a  signal  to  Manila;  but 
after  a  short  buzz  of  conversation  all  went  on  as  quietly 
and  calmly  as  before.  I  was  standing  on  the  bridge  with 
Hughes,  the  executive  officer,  and  being  somewhat  tired,  I 
yawned.  Hughes  turned  to  me  and  said,  "  Bradley,  that 
is  very  impolite,  and  besides  it  is  a  very  bad  sign,  be 
cause  yawns  in  the  evening  mean  tremors  in  the  morn 
ing. "  Scarcely  were  the  words  out  of  his  mouth,  at 
exactly  a  quarter  past  twelve,  when  there  came  the 
screech  and  boom  I  have  spoken  of;  and  this  cleared  up 
the  situation  at  once  and  gave  everybody  a  definite  idea 
of  where  he  was  and  what  he  was  trying  to  do.  Of  course 
the  ships  replied  at  once,  firing  into  the  darkness  on  the 
starboard  side  toward  the  flashes,  which  kept  repeating. 
The  Raleigh,  under  Captain  Coghlan,  was  the  first  to 
fire;  Lieutenant  Babin,  I  think,  was  the  officer  of  the 
poop  division  and  fired  the  first  gun  himself.  Captain 
Wildes,  who  commanded  the  Boston,  steered  out  of  the 
column,  right  toward  the  flashes,  and  opened  with  all  his 
battery,  and  I  shall  never  forget  the  appearance  of  that 
ship  as  seen  from  the  Petrel.  Her  form  could  be  only 
dimly  outlined,  except  when  momentarily  lightened  by 
the  vicious  flashes  of  her  guns,  which  came  in  quick  suc 
cession,  and  one  could  easily  imagine  her  a  war-god 
fighting  with  thunder  and  lightning.  The  attacking  guns 
were  quickly  silenced,  and  we  found  afterward  that  they 
were  on  the  little  Island  El  Fraile,  but  who  the  gallant 
Spaniards  were  who  with  so  little  force  attacked  our  fleet 
I  for  one  have  never  heard. 

At  the  time  of  this  incident  the  fleet  had  just  passed 
within  the  entrance  to  the  bay,  and  the  captain,  Com 
mander  E.  P.  Wood,  and  I  said  to  each  other  that  the 
commodore  evidently  intended  not  to  get  up  to  the  town 


244     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

and  the  Spanish  fleet  until  daylight,  so  as  not  to  risk 
an  attack  in  an  unknown  harbor  from  torpedo-boats, 
regular  or  improvised.  The  captain  then  told  me  to  go 
below  and  get  some  sleep,  as  there  was  no  use  of  both  of 
us  being  on  the  bridge.  He  refused  to  leave  the  bridge 
himself. 

I  left  the  bridge  and  walked  aft.  By  this  time  the 
men  had  already  quieted  down  again.  Some  of  them 
were  standing  in  groups  about  the  deck,  and  some  were 
lying  down,  apparently  asleep.  Lieutenant  Plunkett  and 
Ensign  Fermier  were  lying  down  in  the  rear  of  their 
divisions,  seemingly  slumbering  peacefully,  while  Chief- 
Engineer  Hall,  Lieutenant  Hughes,  and  Paymaster 
Seibels  were  sleeping  on  the  poop.  Everything  about 
the  deck  was  quiet  and  dark  except  for  the  faint  light 
that  came  from  the  stars  above  and  from  the  engine- 
room  below.  The  guns  were  all  ready,  with  ammunition 
behind  them,  and  even  the  breech-blocks  of  some  were 
swung  open.  Despite  these  warlike  signs,  however,  the 
night  was  so  beautiful  and  the  stars  so  bright  and  the  sea 
so  calm  that  the  scene  was  soothing  and  peaceful,  and 
conveyed  little  idea  of  what  we  expected  to  do  in  five 
hours. 

I  walked  down  the  wardroom-ladder,  intending  to  go 
into  the  wardroom,  but  I  found  the  water-tight  door  was 
closed.  This  door,  of  course,  was  shut,  like  all  the  other 
water-tight  doors  in  the  ship,  as  a  precaution  in  case  of 
striking  a  torpedo ;  and  so  I  had  to  go  on  deck  again  and 
into  the  captain's  cabin,  and  down  the  Jacob 's-ladder, 
which  was  kept  there  to  be  used  in  cases  like  this.  I 
found  the  wardroom  absolutely  dark,  and  when  I  reflected 
that  the  ship  might  at  any  moment  explode  a  torpedo,  I 
recognized  the  fact  that  it  might  be  called  uncanny. 
While  such  reflections  were  passing  through  my  mind 
I  was  surprised  and  gratified  by  a  most  reassuring  snore, 
long,  deep,  and  regular,  coming  from  one  of  the  rooms. 
I  groped  my  way  to  the  door  of  this  room  and  listened, 
to  identify  the  snorer.  It  did  not  take  long  for  me  to 


THE  BATTLE  OF  MANILA  2i5 

recognize  the  tone  of  our  medical  officer,  and  I  marveled 
at  his  ability  to  sleep  so  soundly  on  such  an  occasion,  and 
I  envied  him.  Then  I  felt  my  way  to  my  own  room  and 
lay  down  on  my  bunk.  The  deck  above  my  head  was 
distant  about  two  feet,  and  I  thought  how  very  flat  I 
would  be  squashed  out  against  that  deck  if  a  torpedo  ex 
ploded  under  the  ship.  This  idea  was  very  vivid  at 
first,  but  I  was  tired  and  warm,  and  the  idea  became 
gradually  less  and  less  vivid,  and  finally  became  indis 
tinct.  But  I  can  even  now  remember  that  the  last  thing 
in  my  mind  before  I  went  to  sleep  was  how  I  would  look 
if  anybody  saw  me  flattened  out  against  that  deck. 

I  was  aroused  from  my  sleep  by  a  noise  at  my  door 
and  a  voice  saying: 

"The  captain  wishes  to  see  you  on  the  bridge." 

"What  about?"  I  said  sleepily. 

"I  don't  know,"  he  said,  "but  it  is  ten  minutes  to  five, 
and  they  have  begun  to  shoot  at  us." 

Then  I  roused  my  dormant  senses,  and  realized  the 
fact  that  I  was  about  to  go  into  battle  for  the  first  time. 

When  I  reported  to  the  captain  on  the  bridge,  he 
simply  smiled  and  said,  "All  right."  I  looked  ahead  in 
the  dim  morning  light,  and  saw  the  Olympic,,  Baltimore, 
and  Raleigh,  and  ahead  of  them  a  great  number  of  masts 
that  looked  very  indistinct.  I  heard  the  sound  of  one  or 
two  very  distant  guns  ahead  and  saw  their  smoke.  "The 
Spanish  fleet  is  over  there,"  said  the  captain,  pointing 
over  on  our  starboard  side ;  and  there  could  be  discerned 
a  few  indistinct  shapes  that  looked  like  ships.  All  the 
men  were  congregated  about  their  guns,  and  the  guns 
were  loaded.  A  few  were  getting  some  coffee  and  crack 
ers  at  the  galley,  and  the  scene  about  the  deck  was  as  quiet 
and  peaceful  as  I  had  ever  seen  it. 

I  had  always  thought  that  the  position  of  the  captain 
of  a  ship  in  a  fight  should  be  where  he  could  see,  and  I 
had  spent  a  great  deal  of  time  in  trying  to  devise  a  prac 
tical  observing-station.  But  there  was  not  even  a  con- 
ning-tower  on  the  Petrel,  so,  before  leaving  Hong-Kong, 


246     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

I  had  asked  and  received  permission  from  the  captain 
to  rig  up  a  platform  on  the  foremast,  about  forty-five 
feet  up,  where  I  could  sit  with  my  stadimeter,  above  the 
smoke,  and  measure  the  range  of  the  enemy,  and  also 
inform  the  captain  of  whatever  important  incidents  or 
movements  my  clearer  view  might  enable  me  to  see.  I 
had  roped  this  platform  round,  so  that  I  should  not  fall 
overboard,  and  had  arranged  that  the  navigator's  writer 
Howard  should  be  with  me  as  assistant.  I  told  him  the 
day  before  the  battle  to  take  up  to  the  platform  two  life- 
preservers  and  a  rope  strap,  the  life-preservers  to  be 
used  in  case  the  mast  was  shot  away,  and  the  strap  to  be 
put  under  the  arms,  so  that  one  of  us  could  be  lowered, 
if  hit. 

Howard  and  I  started  up  the  rigging  together,  and  I 
remember  saying  to  myself  as  I  was  going  up,  "I  wonder 
if  I  shall  come  down  with  the  same  deliberation."  When 
we  had  seated  ourselves  on  the  platform  and  I  had  ad 
justed  the  stadimeter  for  use,  it  was  a  little  early  for 
work,  and  so  we  occupied  ourselves  with  a  look  at  the 
scene.  There  was  pretty  good  light  now,  and  we  could 
see  that  the  masts  ahead  were  the  masts  of  merchant 
ships ;  and  behind  them  we  could  see  the  white  domes  and 
towers  and  trees  of  what  seemed  the  most  beautiful  city 
we  had  ever  seen.  A  lovely  sheet  of  water,  blue  and 
tranquil,  spread  upon  all  sides;  and  behind  us  rose  the 
great  Island  of  Corregidor,  and  to  the  northward  and 
westward  the  lofty  mountains  of  Luzon.  To  the  right- 
that  is,  to  the  south — the  land  was  lower;  and  there, 
standing  out  in  clear  relief  against  the  bright  blue  sky, 
were  the  awe-inspiring  forms  of  the  ships  of  the  Spanish 
fleet. 

The  Olympia  turned  to  the  right  and  headed  toward 
them.  The  Baltimore  followed,  and  then  the  Raleigh.  I 
picked  up  the  stadimeter,  with  no  very  light  heart,  and 
put  it  to  my  eye.  Just  then  a  shell,  coming  apparently 
from  the  direction  of  the  city,  struck  the  water  close  to 
the  Petrel  and  exploded,  throwing  up  an  enormous  quan- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  MANILA  247 

tity  of  water,  which  drenched  us  on  the  platform,  forty- 
five  feet  above.  My  assistant  was  a  man  whom  I  had 
always  remarked  for  his  extraordinary  imperturbability, 
and  for  some  days  previous  to  the  fight  I  had  caught 
myself  wondering  whether  his  imperturbability  would 
stand  the  test  of  battle ;  but  I  was  at  once  reassured  upon 
this  point,  for  as  he  wiped  the  salt  water  from  his  face 
he  said  with  his  customary  solemnity,  "That  was  pretty 
close,  sir." 

The  Amerian  fleet  turned  down  toward  the  Spanish 
fleet,  personally  directed  by  Dewey,  and  the  Olympia 
soon  opened  with  her  eight-inch  guns.  The  other  ships 
followed  as  they  came  in  range,  and  soon  an  earthquake 
under  me  showed  that  the  little  Petrel  was  taking  her 
turn. 

As  is  well  known,  the  American  fleet  paraded  back 
and  forth  before  the  Spanish  fleet,  firing  as  rapidly  as 
they  could  with  proper  aim.  To  me,  in  my  elevated 
perch,  the  whole  thing  looked  like  a  performance  that 
had  been  very  carefully  rehearsed.  The  ships  went 
slowly  and  regularly,  seldom  or  never  getting  out  of 
their  relative  positions,  and  ceased  firing  at  intervals 
only  when  the  smoke  became  too  thick.  For  a  long  while 
I  could  not  form  an  opinion  as  to  which  way  fortune  was 
going  to  decide.  I  could  see  that  the  Spanish  ships  were 
hit  many  times,  especially  the  Christina  and  Castillo,; 
but  then  it  seemed  to  me  that  our  ships  were  hit  many 
times  also,  and  from  the  way  they  cut  away  boats  from 
the  Raleigh  and  from  other  signs,  I  concluded  the  Raleigh 
was  suffering  severely.  I  could  see  projectiles  falling  in 
the  water  on  all  sides  of  all  our  ships. 

I  was  directly  over  one  of  Plunkett's  guns,  and  saw 
one  shot  take  effect ;  and  that  is  the  only  shot  of  all  those 
I  saw  that  day  which  I  could  follow.  But  I  happened  to 
see  that  six-inch  shell  in  the  air  like  a  black  dot  between 
me  and  the  Castilla.  Then  I  saw  it  strike  almost  in  the 
middle  of  the  target  and  throw  out  flame  and  smoke,  and 
I  wondered  how  many  men  it  killed  and  maimed.  About 


248     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  decks  of  the  Petrel  things  were  entirely  different 
from  what  I  had  expected.  I  had  seen  many  pictures 
of  battles  and  had  expected  great  excitement.  I  did  not 
see  any  excitement  whatever.  The  men  seemed  to  me  to 
be  laboring  under  an  intense  strain  and  to  be  keyed  up 
to  the  highest  pitch,  but  to  be  quiet  and  under  complete 
self-control,  and  to  be  doing  the  work  of  handling  the 
guns  and  ammunition  with  that  mechanical  precision 
which  is  the  result  we  all  hope  to  get  from  drill. 

The  captain  stood  on  the  bridge  beneath  me,  and  it 
was  extraordinary  to  see  this  man  (he  was  one  of  the 
most  nervous  men  I  had  ever  seen)  so  absolutely  com 
posed  and  unnervous.  He  afterward  told  me  that  dur 
ing  the  entire  battle  he  had  not  had  a  single  physical  sen 
sation.  He  was  not  a  strong  man  physically,  and  had 
been  on  deck  all  night  and  much  of  the  day  before,  and  yet 
he  went  through  the  tremendous  strain  and  excitement 
of  the  fight  without,  as  he  said,  knowing  that  he  had  any 
sensations  or  nerves  at  all.  I  understood  this  to  mean 
that  his  mind  was  so  centered  on  what  he  had  to  do  that  he 
himself  was  only  one  of  the  things  he  had  to  manage, 
and  that  he  was  no  more  interested  in  that  thing  than  in 
the  other  things. 

Two  of  the  ships  in  the  Spanish  column  were  evidently 
much  larger  than  the  others,  and  I  instinctively  meas 
ured  the  distance  from  them;  and  the  gunners  in  the 
ship  and  the  captain  seemed  naturally  to  direct  the 
fire  at  them.  I  could  see  also  that  the  Spaniards  directed 
their  firing  principally  at  the  Olympia  and  the  Baltimore, 
which  were  our  largest  ships,  and  I  felt  quite  confident, 
after  a  while,  that  the  Petrel  was  not  given  so  much  at 
tention  as  the  rest  of  the  ships.  Of  course  I  do  not  know 
whether  the  commanders-in-chief  of  the  two  fleets  had 
given  orders  that  this  be  done,  or  whether  the  mere 
prominence  of  the  larger  ships  attracted  the  attention 
of  the  gunners.  I  became  certain,  however,  in  my  own 
mind,  that  in  any  fleet  action  the  natural  impulse  of 
everybody  will  be  to  fire  at  the  most  prominent  ships. 


ft 


THE  BATTLE  OF  MANILA  249 

I  realised  that,  in  most  cases,  this  would  not  be  the  best 
distribution  of  firing,  and  therefore  the  natural  tendency 
would  have  to  be  counteracted  by  specific  orders. 

I  think  everybody  was  disappointed  at  the  great  num 
ber  of  shots  lost.  Our  practice  was  evidently  much  bet 
ter  than  that  of  the  Spaniards,  but  it  did  not  seem  to  me 
that  it  was  at  all  good.  There  was  no  question  in  my 
mind  that  the  two  principal  causes  were  the  uncertainty 
about  the  true  range,  and  the  fact  that  each  gun  captain 
felt  it  was' incumbent  upon  him  to  fire  as  fast  as  he  could. 

I  measured  the  ranges,  or  distances,  by  means  of  the 
stadimeter,  an  optical  instrument  of  my  invention,  first 
setting  the  instrument  at  a  certain  graduation,  which 
represented  the  height  which  I  estimated  to  be  the  height 
of  the  ship  we  were  firing  at.  The  distance  which  the 
stadimeter  then  indicated,  I  shouted  to  the  captain,  who 
then  ordered  the  gun-sights  to  be  set  at  that  distance. 
At  first  our  shots  fell  short.  I  then  set  the  instrument 
at  a  graduation  representing  a  greater  height  of  mast, 
which  caused  the  instrument  to  indicate  a  greater  dis 
tance,  and  the  shots  to  go  farther.  After  a  few  trials 
I  found  the  correct  setting  for  the  stadimeter,  and  after 
that  the  shots  grouped  around  and  on  the  target  in  a 
satisfactory  way. 

As  regards  the  guns,  the  captains  fired  too  rapidly,  I 
thought.  My  impression  on  the  day  of  the  battle  was 
that  the  fault  of  too  rapid  firing  was  not  to  be  blamed 
so  much  upon  the  gun  captains  themselves  as  upon  the 
people  who  surrounded  them,  principally  the  division 
officers.  I  felt  sure  that  a  gun  captain  sometimes 
fired  in  a  spirit  of  desperation,  and  just  trusting  to 
luck,  when  he  could  not  get  his  sights  properly  to  bear, 
simply  because  he  felt  that  the  division  officer  was  get 
ting  impatient. 

I  looked  to  see  if  there  were  any  signs  of  skulking,  but 
I  saw  absolutely  none.  On  the  contrary,  it  seemed  to 
me  that  people  exposed  themselves  more  than  was  neces 
sary,  and  I  noticed  that  when  their  duties  called  Hall 


250     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

and  Wood  on  deck,  they  remained  there  longer  than 
seemed  to  me  to  be  absolutely  required.  In  fact,  I  was 
glad  to  see  that  there  was  a  strong  desire  on  the  part  of 
many  who  had  stations  below  to  come  on  deck  and  get 
the  feeling  of  being  ' '  in  it. "  Certainly  a  dozen  times  I 
saw  some  of  them  come  rapidly  up  the  ladder  to  the 
deck,  as  if  they  had  important  business  there,  and  then 
get  over  somewhere  on  the  side  engaged  and  watch  the 
fight;  and  I  could  not  help  thinking  at  the  time  what  a 
pity  it  would  be  if  one  of  those  men  should  have  some 
thing  shot  away  when  he  was  simply  obeying  the  im 
pulses  of  a  self -forgetting  zeal. 

Almost  the  first  thing  I  remember  after  I  got  on  deck 
was  Ensign  Montgomery,  the  signal  officer,  trying  to 
read  a  signal,  and  then  reporting  it  to  the  captain.  I 
think  the  signal  was  "Prepare  for  action."  At  this  time 
there  was  a  breeze,  and  the  flags  blew  out  fairly  well ;  but 
later  on  the  flags  hung  up  and  down  like  rags;  and  al 
though  the  ships  were  well  closed  up,  it  was  impossible 
to  read  them.  The  smoke  did  not  prevent  the  reading  of 
the  signals  except  at  intervals.  I  noted  this  fact  care 
fully. 

After  some  time — I  do  not  know  how  long — it  became 
evident  that  the  Spanish  fleet  was  suffering  very  badly, 
especially  the  two  principal  ships,  and  I  remember  re 
porting  to  the  captain  that  one  of  the  ships  had  not  fired 
a  shot  in  fifteen  minutes,  when  that  ship  then  fired  a  shot 
which  came  very  close  to  us.  I  also  remember  reporting 
to  him  that  the  other  principal  ship  was  on  fire  in  two 
places.  It  was  not  long  after  this  that  Commodore 
Dewey  withdrew  the  fleet  out  into  the  bay  and  sent  the 
men  to  breakfast.  I  looked  at  my  watch  at  this  time; 
my  recollection  is  that  it  said  half  past  seven.  It  seemed 
to  me  in  a  vague  way  that  it  was  about  two  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon,  and  I  said  to  my  assistant,  "It  is  very  unfor 
tunate;  I  must  have  forgotten  to  wind  my  watch,  and 
it  has  stopped  at  half  past  seven."  I  then  looked  at  it 
again  carefully  and  saw  that  the  watch  had  not  stopped, 


THE  BATTLE  OF  MANILA  251 

and  I  afterward  found  that  the  watch  was  indicating 
correctly.  So,  although  my  attention  had  been  on  the 
alert,  and  time  could  not  be  said  to  have  dragged,  it 
seemed  to  me  that  I  had  been  up  there  for  hours,  and 
I  went  down  to  the  deck  with  a  feeling  of  weariness  and 
relief.  The  position  had  been  rather  trying.  There  was 
not  enough  going  on  in  my  immediate  neighborhood  to 
distract  my  attention  from  personal  danger.  I  could 
see  the  smoke  of  every  Spanish  shot  fired,  and  I  think 
I  heard  the  whistle  of  every  shell;  and  I  was  glad  to 
get  down  on  deck,  where  other  people  were,  and  feel 
their  comforting  companionship.  This  leads  me  to  re 
flect  that,  while  history  shows  that  naval  fights  are  not 
so  dangerous  as  army  fights,  yet  a  man  fighting  on  board 
a  ship  is  under  a  greater  nervous  tension  than  a  man 
fighting  on  shore.  A  man  fighting  on  board  a  ship  must 
remain  in  almost  one  place  and  perform  his  very  precise 
duties,  such  as  serving  a  large  gun  and  sighting  it  in 
the  midst  of  terrible  noises;  while  a  man  on  shore  can 
relieve  his  nervous  tension  by  moving  about,  running  or 
walking,  and  frequently  firing  his  musket,  and  his  nerves 
are  not  shaken  by  the  concussion  of  such  tremendous  guns 
as  are  on  board  ship. 

The  first  thing  to  do  after  getting  out  into  the  bay 
was  to  count  the  ammunition  left.  As  I  remember  it,  we 
had  expended  about  one  third  of  our  entire  supply. 
After  this  I  went  into  the  wardroom,  where  the  mess  were 
gathered  over  a  very  satisfactory  meal  of  sandwiches, 
coffee,  and  beer.  Some  one  said,  "Sit  down,  Bradley," 
to  which  I  replied  that  I  would  as  soon  as  I  washed  my 
hands.  With  that  one  of  them  caught  hold  of  me  and 
said:  "No,  you  won't  wash  your  hands;  no  one  is  al 
lowed  to  wash  his  hands.  We  don't  go  into  battle  every 
day,  and  we  are  not  going  to  wipe  off  any  of  the  smoke 
and  dirt. ' ' 

After  coming  down  from  aloft  my  attention  had  been 
engaged  in  the  counting  of  the  ammunition,  and  yet  I  had 
a  question  on  my  tongue  continually,  which  I  felt  loath 


252     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

to  ask;  it  was  how  many  in  our  ship  had  been  killed. 
My  astonishment  was  great  when  I  heard  that  no  one 
had  been  killed,  and  no  one  had  been  wounded.  To  this 
I  answered  that  the  Petrel's  small  size  must  have  saved 
her,  because  I  knew  the  Raleigh  must  have  suffered 
severely.  Then  some  one  said  that  "there  had  not  been 
a  man  killed  in  the  whole  fleet,  and  comparatively  few 
had  been  wounded."  It  was  a  long  time  before  I  could 
adjust  my  mind  to  believing  this,  for  although  I  could 
see  from  aloft  that  the  American  fleet  had  got  the  better 
of  the  fight  so  far,  yet  I  had  seen  so  much  havoc  wrought 
on  the  Spanish  ships,  and  so  many  of  their  projectiles  fall 
near  us,  that  I  could  not  believe  for  a  long  while  that 
there  could  be  so  few  casualties  in  our  ships. 

Expecting  that  we  would  be  very  busily  engaged  later 
on  in  the  day,  I  lay  down  on  my  bunk  to  rest  and  try 
to  get  a  little  sleep ;  but  I  had  not  been  long  there  when 
I  heard  sounds  of  terrific  explosions  in  the  distances, 
and  the  voices  of  men  on  deck  calling, ' '  They  are  blowing 
up  their  ships." 

The  captains  of  our  ships  had  been  summoned  on 
board  the  flag-ship  by  signal,  and  some  time,  I  think, 
about  eleven  o'clock  they  returned  to  their  ships.  Our 
captain  brought  back  with  him  Captain  Wildes  of  the 
Boston,  for  the  Boston  had  no  boats  left  that  she  could 
use.  Our  captain  told  us  that  we  were  to  start  in  at 
once,  the  Baltimore  leading,  to  engage  the  shore  batter 
ies  around  Sangley  Point  as  well  as  the  Spanish  ships; 
and  that,  as  soon  as  it  could  be  done,  the  Petrel  would 
be  sent  in  close  to  do  whatever  was  necessary.  To  most 
of  us  it  seemed  that  our  interesting  time  was  coming; 
that  is,  the  time  after  we  should  go  into  the  arsenal,  which 
our  light  draft  of  water  permitted  us  alone  to  do.  None 
of  our  ships  had  as  yet  been  struck  by  a  torpedo,  but 
the  water  near  the  arsenal  was  only  from  two  to  four 
fathoms  deep,  and  we  reasoned  that  this  was  exactly  the 
place  where  the  Spaniards  would  plant  torpedoes.  Now, 
torpedoes  we  considered  the  greatest  danger. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  MANILA  253 

In  obedience  to  signal,  the  Baltimore  at  once  got  un 
der  way  and  steamed  rapidly  in  toward  Sangley  Point. 
She  seemed  to  be  going  at  full  speed,  and  as  soon  as 
the  guns  of  her  batteries  could  be  used  she  began  to  fire. 
Her  appearance  as  seen  from  my  perch  aloft  was  dra 
matic  and  picturesque  in  the  extreme.  With  her  great 
size  and  rapid  speed,  she  seemed  literally  rushing  on  the 
foe,  and  when  she  began  to  strike  out  with  those  long 
guns,  I  got  a  realizing  sense  of  force  in  motion  that  I  had 
never  had  before.  The  beach  seemed  to  be  torn  up  with 
the  impact  of  her  shells,  and  the  air  there  to  be  filled  with 
clouds  of  sand  and  the  smoke  and  the  flames  of  burning 
powder.  The  batteries  could  not  stand  this  very  long, 
and  soon  gave  up  the  fight. 

Our  role  of  the  interested  spectator  was  soon  ended 
by  the  expected  signal  to  go  in  after  the  Baltimore.  We 
engaged  first  a  vessel  which  afterward  proved  to  be  the 
Don  Juan  d'Ulloa,  and  we  fired  on  her  for  a  long  time 
without  seeming  to  do  much  damage  or  eliciting  any 
reply.  We  afterward  found  that  the  ship  had  been 
abandoned,  and  that,  while  our  projectiles  had  pierced 
her  many  times,  they  had  not  really  inflicted  on  her  any 
great  injury.  One  shell,  however,  went  over  to  the  ar 
senal,  and  went  through  the  commandant's  house — as  we 
heard  afterward — and  passed  through  the  dining-room, 
where  a  number  of  people  were  together.  The  result  was 
the  immediate  hauling  down  of  the  Spanish  flag  and  the 
hoisting  of  the  white  flag.  As  soon  as  this  was  known 
aboard  the  flag-ship,  she  hoisted  the  signal  long  expected 
by  us,  "Petrel  pass  inside."  This  signal  was  shortly  fol 
lowed  by  another  to  us  to  burn  the  Spanish  ships. 

During  the  time  of  the  withdrawal  of  the  American 
fleet  the  Spaniards  had  run  their  ships  as  close  in  as  the 
depth  of  water  permitted  and  abandoned  them.  We 
supposed,  of  course,  that  they  had  laid  trains  to  their 
magazines,  so  that  the  task  of  burning  them  would  be  by 
no  means  a  safe  one.  The  captain  at  once  told  the  execu 
tive  officer,  Hughes,  to  go  and  burn  them,  and  called  for 


254     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

volunteers.  The  call  for  volunteers  was  immediately 
answered  by  a  chorus  of  voices,  the  first  voice  being  that 
of  a  seaman  named  Sprong,  who  called  out  instantly, 
"Here  's  one." 

The  Petrel  had  anchored  near  the  long  stone  bastion 
of  the  arsenal,  but  from  that  position  we  could  not  see 
the  Spanish  ships  that  Hughes  went  in  to  burn.  The 
consequence  was  that  soon  after  he  started  off  he  was 
lost  to  sight  behind  the  bastion.  I  immediately  went  to 
the  pilot-house  to  consult  the  chart  and  see  if  it  was  not 
possible  to  go  in  still  farther,  to  a  place  where  we  could 
get  a  good  view  of  the  arsenal  and  the  party  of  Hughes. 
I  soon  saw  that  it  was  possible,  and  went  out  on  the 
bridge  to  tell  the  captain  so ;  but  before  I  could  suggest 
the  matter,  he  said: 

"Don't  you  think  we  can  get  in  closer?"    I  replied: 

"I  know  we  can,  sir,  because  I  have  just  looked  it 
up." 

So  we  picked  up  the  anchor,  and  steamed  to  the  south 
ward,  to  a  position  where  our  keel  just  cleared  the  bot 
tom. 

We  saw  a  lot  of  good-looking  tugs  and  launches,  and 
what  seemed  to  be  several  thousand  soldiers  and  sailors 
in  the  arsenal  grounds.  The  captain  said  he  thought 
that  he  ought  to  get  as  many  of  those  tugs  and  launches 
as  he  could,  as  they  might  be  very  useful.  I  replied  that 
it  would  be  very  easy  to  get  them.  He  then  called  for 
volunteers,  which  were  very  quickly  got,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  I  shoved  off  and  went  alongside  of  the  arsenal 
dock  with  half  a  dozen  men.  I  never  had  at  any  time 
during  either  the  Spanish  or  the  Filipino  War  the  slight 
est  trouble  with  the  men  in  pushing  them  ahead,  but  al 
ways  trouble  in  holding  them  back.  On  this  occasion  as 
I  went  alongside  of  the  dock  I  had  to  reiterate  my  order 
to  remain  in  the  boat  and  not  load  their  muskets. 

I  got  up  on  the  stone  dock  and  looked  about  me.  I 
had  scarcely  done  so  when  I  saw  advancing  toward  me  a 
large  number  of  Spanish  officers.  I  should  say  from 


255 

recollection  at  least  twenty-five.  Behind  them,  farther 
up  the  dock,  was  what  looked  to  me  like  a  small  army  of 
soldiers  drawn  up  in  regular  formation  under  arms,  and 
a  crowd  of  some  hundred  sailors,  who  did  not  seem  to  be 
in  any  formation  whatever,  but  walking  about  as  they 
pleased,  though  armed.  I  advanced  toward  the  officers, 
and  they  advanced  toward  me,  and  we  exchanged  most 
punctilious  salutes.  We  tried  to  talk  in  English  and 
Spanish,  but  they  could  not  talk  English  well  enough,  and 
I  could  not  talk  Spanish  well  enough ;  but  I  managed  to 
get  along  fairly  well  with  one  of  the  officers  in  French. 

The  Spanish  officers  seemed  to  be  somewhat  excited, 
and  they  asked  me  questions  that  I  could  not  at  first  un 
derstand;  but  finally  I  found  out  that  there  were  two 
principal  questions:  one  was  whether  the  firing  from 
the  American  ships  would  begin  again,  and  the  other 
question  was  whether  they  would  be  permitted  to  go 
back  on  board  their  ships,  which  they  had  abandoned  in 
such  haste  that  they  had  left  behind  them  their  pocket 
money,  the  pictures  of  their  families,  and  all  their  clothes. 
In  reply  to  their  first  question,  I  told  them  that  the 
Americans  had  recognized  their  white  flag,  and  that 
they  would  not  fire  again  at  the  arsenal,  but  would  re 
spect  their  white  flag  so  long  as  they,  the  Spaniards,  re 
spected  it.  This  statement  seemed  to  gratify  them,  and 
they  all  cried  out,  "Americanos  siempre  caballeros." 
To  this  I  replied,  "Siempre."  To  the  other  question, 
whether  they  could  go  on  board  their  ships  and  get  their 
belongings,  I  replied  I  had  not  the  authority  to  give  them 
that  permission;  but  that  I  had  a  boat  there,  and  if  any 
of  them  wished,  I  would  allow  them  to  take  it  and  go  over 
to  the  Petrel,  and  that  I  was  sure  the  captain  would  give 
them  permission.  My  remark  seemed  to  strike  them 
queerly,  for  they  half  smiled  and  remarked  that  they  did 
not  care  to  take  advantage  of  my  kind  offer.  I  then  said, 
"Very  well;  I  will  go  over  myself  and  ask  the  captain  and 
come  back  and  tell  you  what  he  says."  I  did  this,  and 

*  "Americans  always  gentlemen." 


256     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

soon  returned  to  the  arsenal  with  the  captain's  permis 
sion.  They  were  awaiting  my  reply,  and  when  I  told 
them  that  the  captain  gave  his  free  permission  on  the 
condition  that  none  of  them  would  attempt  to  put  out  the 
fires  on  board  their  ships,  they  seemed  much  pleased, 
and  some  of  them  said  again,  "Americanos  siempre  cabal- 
leros."  Now,  the  peculiar  ending  of  this  incident  was 
that,  although  there  was  a  number  of  small  boats  at  hand 
belonging  to  the  arsenal,  not  one  of  these  officers  went 
to  a  ship  or  took  advantage  in  any  way  of  the  permis 
sion  they  had  requested  and  received! 

My  men  were  soon  engaged  in  the  work  of  clearing 
away  the  fastenings  that  held  the  tugs  and  launches,  and 
for  some  reason  that  I  cannot  now  remember  this  work 
was  not  easy.  Seeing  a  number  of  Spanish  sailors  con 
gregated  about,  looking  on  with  languid  interest,  I  told 
a  couple  of  them  to  help.  This  they  did  without  any  ob 
jection,  and  I  soon  had  a  number  of  our  enemies  pulling 
and  hauling  and  working  away  like  good  sailors.  The 
consequence  was  that  in  an  hour  or  two  I  was  going  back 
to  the  Petrel  with  two  large  tugs,  three  steam  launches, 
and  some  smaller  boats. 

By  this  time  Hughes  had  returned  to  the  Petrel,  hav 
ing  with  the  assistance  of  Ensign  Fermier  fully  carried 
out  his  dangerous  work,  and  the  rest  of  the  fleet  was  well 
out  in  the  bay.  Then  the  Petrel  steamed  up  toward  it, 
towing  our  prizes.  At  nightfall  the  whole  fleet  started 
towards  Manila  city,  lighted  on  our  way  by  the  brilliant 
flames  of  the  ships  of  our  conquered  foes. 

The  events  just  narrated  seemed  at  the  time  perfectly 
natural  and  to  be  expected.  When  the  battle  was  over, 
we  did  not  feel  that  we  had  done  anything  wonderful; 
and  I  do  not  believe  that  anybody  in  the  fleet  appreciated 
the  fact  that  the  Battle  of  Manila  was  one  of  the  most  im 
portant  battles  that  had  ever  been  fought  in  any  coun 
try  or  in  any  age,  and  wrould  be  recorded  in  history  as  one 
of  the  " Decisive  Battles  of  the  World." 


CHAPTER  XVII 

AFTER   THE    BATTLE 

SHORTLY  after  the  Petrel  anchored  near  Manila  city 
with  the  fleet,  the  men  went  to  supper,  and  the  officers 
went  to  dinner.  The  talk  all  over  the  ship  was  mainly 
about  the  battle.  All  were  surprised  at  the  small  loss 
in  the  American  ships,  and  all  agreed  that  the  reason  was 
that  most  of  the  enemy's  shots  went  too  far  or  else  too 
short ;  because  the  sea  between  us  and  the  Spaniards  had 
been  covered  with  spouts  of  water  thrown  up  by  their 
falling  shell,  and  so  had  the  sea  beyond  us,  and  our  ships 
were  so  close  behind  one  another  that  any  Spanish  shot 
that  had  gone  to  the  proper  distance  would  have  been  al 
most  sure  to  hit  some  ship,  even  if  it  had  gone  to  the 
right  or  the  left  of  the  ship  aimed  at.  Of  course  we  had 
known  for  years  that  the  real  reason  why  ships  are  not 
hit  more  in  battle  is  because  shots  go  too  far  or  too 
short,  but  this  object  lesson  stamped  the  fact  deep  in  our 
minds.  It  stamped  the  fact  so  deep  in  my  mind  that 
now  it  seems  almost  a  law  of  nature,  and  ninety  per 
cent,  of  the  art  of  naval  gunnery  seems  to  me  to  be  the 
art  of  merely  shooting  to  the  correct  distance.  This 
means  three  things :  first,  finding  what  the  correct  dis 
tance  is ;  second,  using  the  proper  powder  and  projectiles ; 
and,  third,  firing  the  gun  when  it  is  elevated  at  the  cor 
rect  angle. 

Hughes  told  us  at  dinner  how  he  had  set  fire  to  the 
Spanish  ships.  His  work  must  have  been  very  trying 
to  the  nerves,  because  every  ship  had  a  great  deal  of 
powder  in  it,  and  it  was  only  to  be  expected  that  the 
Spaniards  had  made  arrangements  for  blowing  the  ships 
up ;  so  that  every  man  felt  that  the  next  instant  he  might 

257 


258     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

be  hurled  high  into  the  air,  the  members  of  his  body  torn 
apart,  and  mixed  with  flying  masses  of  steel  and  wood 
and  brass.  Hughes  said  that  the  thing  which  shook  his 
nerve  the  most  happened  when  he  was  in  the  wardroom  of 
the  Isla  de  Luzon  alone.  Hearing  a  slight  muffled  sound, 
he  turned  around  quickly,  and  saw  coming  out  of  a  room 
close  to  him  a  big,  naked  black  man.  This  man  was 
shaking  with  terror,  however,  and  almost  in  a  state  of 
collapse,  so  that  he  was  clearly  not  a  bogy  man,  but 
ordinary  flesh  and  blood.  Hughes  recognized  the  fact 
that  we  had  no  use  for  prisoners  of  any  kind,  and  so 
put  him  ashore  at  once.  No  sooner  did  the  man's  feet 
strike  good,  dry  ground  than  he  sprang  forward  and 
ran  away,  like  the  frightened  savage  that  he  was. 

Hughes  brought  with  him  from  the  Isla  de  Cuba  a 
pathetic  object,  a  wounded  little  monkey  that  one  of  his 
men  had  found  down  in  the  engine-room.  The  men  had 
heard  the  cries  of  some  little  animal  coming  from  be 
low,  and  following  the  cries,  they  had  gone  to  the  engine- 
room,  which  they  found  almost  full  of  water ;  and  there, 
just  showing  above  the  water,  they  saw  a  bleeding 
monkey's  head.  On  trying  to  rescue  him,  they  found 
that  he  was  held  by  a  belt  around  the  waist  to  a  chain, 
and  that  this  chain  was  secured  to  some  part  of  the 
engine-room.  The  monkey  had  got  as  far  up  as  he  could, 
and  if  the  water  had  risen  a  little  higher,  he  would  have 
been  drowned.  In  some  way  his  nose  had  received  a 
violent  blow  that  had  cut  through  the  nose  bone,  and  it 
was  bleeding  so  fast  that  his  thin  little  body  was  like  a 
sponge  that  was  being  squeezed.  They  rescued  the 
monkey  from  his  danger,  and  brought  him  on  board  the 
Petrel,  where  the  surgeon  bound  up  his  wounds  and  min 
istered  to  his  needs  most  carefully  for  the  monkey  was 
his  only  wounded  patient.  The  men  christened  the 
monkey  " Alfonso  the  Last,"  and  he  was  always  known 
afterward  as  Alfonso. 

He  was  different  from  any  other  monkey  we  had  ever 
seen.  Most  monkeys  are  interesting,  but  they  are  so 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  259 

mischievous  and  dirty  that  they  soon  become  nuisances; 
while  Alfonso  was  as  quiet  and  nice  as  any  other  pet, 
and  as  affectionate  as  a  puppy.  He  came  to  have  his  own 
particular  chums  in  the  ship,  but  divided  his  innermost 
affections  between  Hughes,  the  executive  officer,  and  Hart, 
a  quartermaster.  He  used  to  like  to  go  to  sleep  under 
Hughes 's  blouse,  in  the  warm  afternoons  on  the  poop,  and 
next  to  this,  his  particular  delight  was  to  go  to  Hart  and 
have  him  blow  tobacco  smoke  down  his  throat.  A  few 
months  later  one  of  the  sailors  took  Alfonso  ashore  in 
Hong-Kong,  and  they  both  got  very  drunk  at  the  Vic 
toria  bar.  Some  mate  of  a  merchant  ship  took  advantage 
of  this,  and  stole  Alfonso,  and  took  him  on  board  his 
ship;  but  the  men  of  the  Petrel  sent  a  message  to  the 
proprietor  of  the  bar  that  if  Alfonso  was  not  found,  the 
Victoria  bar  would  be  boycotted  by  all  the  sailors  of 
the  American  fleet.  Alfonso  was  brought  on  board  next 
day. 

The  evening  of  May  1  was  calm  and  beautiful;  there 
was  hardly  a  cloud  in  the  sky,  and  the  stars  were  bright, 
and  the  water  was  smooth.  To  the  south  seven  large 
red  flames,  rising  with  smoke  to  the  sky,  showed  where 
lay  the  shapeless  wrecks  of  seven  ships  that  fourteen 
hours  before  had  carried  the  flag  of  Spain  and  symbolized 
her  glory.  To  the  east  we  saw  the  city  of  Manila,  with 
its  electric  lights  and  gas-lights,  and  its  vague  sky-line 
of  spires  and  towers  and  domes  and  distant  hills. 

What  was  going  on  in  that  city?  What  was  going  on 
all  along  its  water-front  and  on  the  Pasig  Eiver  1  Prob 
ably  the  Spaniards  were  making  preparations  for  an  at 
tack  upon  our  fleet.  We  did  not  know  much  about 
Manila,  but  we  knew  that  the  population  was  not  less 
than  a  quarter  of  a  million,  and  that  there  were  many 
water  craft  of  all  kinds,  from  ocean  steamers  down  to 
rowboats,  including  tugs,  launches,  barges,  and  floats. 
WTe  knew  that  there  must  be  many  thousand  Spanish 
soldiers  there,  and  many  thousand  armed  Filipinos  who 
had  been  insurgents,  but  might  now  join  with  the  Span- 


260     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAB-ADMIBAL 

iards  to  drive  off  a  common  foe.  We  did  not  know 
whether  there  were  any  regular  torpedo-boats  about ;  but 
we  said  to  each  other  that  the  Spaniards  had  long  known 
that  there  would  be  war,  and  that  they  had  had  plenty 
of  time  to  rig  up  improvised  torpedo-boats,  and  it  seemed 
very  likely  to  us  that  they  would  send  an  expedition  at 
us  that  night,  composed,  in  part,  of  them.  Of  course  it 
would  be  a  desperate  deed,  but  was  it  not  the  proper 
time  to  do  a  desperate  deed? 

Our  ships  were  ordered  by  Commodore  Dewey,  by 
signal,  to  have  armed  guards  on  deck  and  to  keep  a  very 
bright  lookout ;  so,  on  board  the  Petrel,  half  of  one  watch 
was  kept  on  deck  armed,  and  plenty  of  ammunition  was 
put  near  the  guns,  and  all  preparations  were  made  for 
getting  up  more  from  the  magazines.  At  ten  o'clock 
everything  was  ready,  and  everybody  was  tired;  so,  when 
I  turned  in  then,  it  was  not  hard  to  go  to  sleep. 

Some  time  later  I  was  roused  by  a  frightful  noise.  I 
started  up  in  my  bunk,  and  my  stimulated  senses  soon 
told  me  that  the  noise  was  the  clanging  of  the  alarm- 
gong  that  called  the  crew  to  quarters  in  emergency.  Of 
course  I  had  not  undressed  completely,  and  it  did  not 
take  me  long  to  get  on  deck;  but  when  I  got  there,  I 
found  most  of  the  men  already  at  their  stations  by  their 
guns,  and  the  gun  captains  standing  behind  the  guns, 
with  their  eyes  looking  over  the  sights. 

"What  's  the  matter?"  I  asked  of  some  one. 

"Torpedo  attack,  sir,"  was  the  reply. 

I  relieved  the  officer  of  the  deck,  and  stepped  up  on  the 
poop.  There  I  could  get  a  good  view  of  the  water,  and  I 
quickly  saw  what  looked  like  a  torpedo-boat  brought  out 
into  startling  distinctness  by  a  search-light  from  one  of 
our  ships.  A  second  glance  showed,  however,  that  it  was 
not  a  regular  torpedo-boat,  but,  as  I  remember,  a  white 
launch  or  small  tug.  Her  fate  was  evidently  sealed,  for 
nearly  all  the  guns  in  the  fleet  were  turned  on  her,  and 
she  was  so  bright  an  object  that  the  gun-sights  showed 
clearly  outlined  against  her.  But  of  course,  we  reasoned, 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  261 

the  Spaniards  had  not  sent  one  torpedo-boat  alone ;  there 
must  be  others  rushing  toward  us  from  other  directions ; 
and  so  a  dozen  search-light  beams  were  sent  darting  over 
the  harbor.  We  looked  on  all  sides,  but  could  not  see  any 
other  boats ;  only  the  white  light  rays  and  the  dark  water 
and  the  dim  city  and  the  dull-red  glow  cast  on  the  sky 
by  the  burning  ships,  except  where  a  search-light  brought 
into  sudden  vividness  a  ship  or  tower  or  narrow  streak  of 
water.  I  remember  the  tension  of  my  brain,  and  almost 
see  the  strained  attitudes  of  the  men  about  the  guns. 
Yet,  when  the  loading  of  the  guns  had  been  done,  there 
was  not  a  sound;  every  man  seemed  simply  waiting. 
The  temptation  to  fire  was  tremendous;  yet  not  a  shot 
was  fired.  We  saw  that  boat  steer  directly  at  the  flag 
ship,  and  then,  to  our  amazement,  go  peacefully  alongside ! 
Some  man  went  up  the  ladder  to  the  deck.  We  heard 
afterward  (but  of  course  the  story  is  not  true)  that 
when  this  man  reached  the  deck,  he  was  met  by  Com 
modore  Dewey,  who  greeted  him  with  the  information 
that  he  was  ad—-  fool. 

I  do  not  now7  remember  who  the  man  was,  or  why  he 
started  at  night  in  war  to  go  on  board  a  fighting  ship, 
but  I  remember  that  his  business  was  not  important. 
And  he  may  be  thankful  that  the  coolness  of  the  men 
behind  the  guns  saved  him  from  gurgling  and  bleeding 
out  his  life  that  night  under  the  waters  of  Manila  Bay. 

Next  morning  most  of  us  went  on  deck  early  to  look  at 
our  surroundings.  The  sun  was  already  intensely  hot, 
and  shining  through  clear  air  out  of  a  bright  sky;  there 
was  no  breeze,  and  no  ripple.  The  ships  of  our  fleet 
were  lying  near  together  off  the  city  of  Manila,  perhaps 
two  miles  away,  and  the  ships  of  the  Spanish  fleet  were 
about  seven  miles  to  the  southward,  near  Cavite.  Three 
of  them  were  sunk,  and  beyond  them  were  the  seven 
that  had  been  set  on  fire.  These  were  still  burning,  while 
a  long  red  steamer  was  aground,  and  also  burning,  be 
tween  the  American  fleet  and  the  Spanish  fleet,  close  to 
the  shore,  and  about  six  miles  south  of  Manila.  This 


262     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

steamer  had  been  set  on  fire  by  the  Concord,  and  we 
afterward  found  that  she  was  the  transport  Isla  de 
Mindanao. 

The  city  of  Manila  looked  distinctly  Spanish.  Of 
course  the  most  prominent  object  was  the  cathedral, 
whose  dome  rose  beautiful  and  high.  In  masses,  grouped 
about  it,  were  many  fine  buildings  that  we  could  not  see 
very  plainly.  This  part  of  Manila  we  afterward  found 
was  the  old  and  walled  city,  the  city  of  Manila  proper. 
To  the  southward  and  the  northward  the  fine  buildings 
gradually  shaded  away  into  smaller  ones,  toward  small 
huts  that  were  evidently  in  the  suburbs.  In  the  fore 
ground,  between  us  and  the  cathedral,  was  a  lighthouse, 
on  the  end  of  a  river  that  came  through  the  city  to  the 
bay.  Along  the  extreme  background  ran  mountains  that 
were  high  and  far  away. 

Captain  Lamberton,  chief  of  staff,  came  on  board  early, 
and  with  him,  I  think,  was  Mr.  Joseph  Stickney,  war 
correspondent.  Then  the  Petrel  picked  up  her  anchor 
and  steamed  rapidly  southward  towards  the  arsenal  at 
Cavite.  Later  the  entire  squadron  followed  her.  The 
Petrel  passed  the  sunken  ships  Reina  Christina,  Castilla, 
and  Don  Juan  d'  Ulloa,  which  had  sunk  somewhat  to  the 
northward  of  the  bastion  of  the  arsenal,  passed  the  bas 
tion,  and  went  to  her  anchorage  of  the  day  before  in 
Bacoor  Bay,  directly  in  front  of  the  landing-place  of 
the  arsenal.  Captain  Lamberton  and  Mr.  Stickney  went 
ashore  to  the  arsenal,  and  shortly  afterward  returned. 
If  I  remember  aright,  we  heard,  when  they  returned,  that 
the  Spanish  army  officers  told  Captain  Lamberton  that 
the  surrender  of  the  day  before  had  been  the  surrender 
of  the  navy  only,  and  that  neither  the  arsenal  nor  the 
army  had  surrendered.  To  this  Captain  Lamberton  re 
plied  that  he  would  give  them  until  eleven  o'clock  for 
all  to  surrender;  and  that  if  the  white  flag  was  not 
hoisted  on  the  arsenal  by  that  time,  the  whole  fleet  would 
open  fire  on  it. 

Soon  a  white  steam  launch  was  seen  coming  from  the 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  263 

arsenal.  It  came  alongside  the  Petrel,  and  three  Span 
ish  officers  came  on  board.  They  were  received  with  the 
honors  due  their  rank,  which  they  acknowledged  with  dig 
nity.  Evidently  they  were  under  a  heartbreaking  strain, 
and  surely  it  would  be  a  cold  heart  that  would  not  pity 
them.  These  were  officers  who  had  been  terribly  beaten 
in  battle;  their  entire  naval  force  had  been  wiped  out, 
and  their  military  force  had  nothing  to  hope  for.  These 
were  officers  of  a  country  whose  battle  they  had  lost, 
whose  power  they  had  failed  to  uphold,  and  whose  glory 
had  perished  in  their  keeping.  These  were  officers  of  a 
country  that  was  not  magnanimous,  and  might  repay 
their  brave,  but  futile,  efforts  with  indignity.  Most  of 
them  had  their  wives  and  families  in  Manila.  Manila 
had  close  in  front  of  it  a  powerful,  victorious  fleet;  and 
behind  it  and  in  it,  and  all  around  it  tens  of  thousands  of 
bitterly  hostile  Filipinos,  partly  organized  and  armed, 
waiting  for  revenge. 

The  Spanish  officers  went  into  the  cabin,  and  shortly 
after  came  out  and  got  into  their  boat,  and  went  ashore. 
Soon  after,  a  white  flag  was  run  up  at  the  arsenal.  We 
understood  that  the  Spanish  naval  and  military  people 
were  allowed  to  leave  the  arsenal  and  go  where  they 
wished.  It  was  impossible  for  Commodore  Dewey  to  ac 
cept  them  as  prisoners  of  war,  because,  if  he  did,  he 
would  become  responsible  for  them;  and  what  could  he  do 
with  them? 

That  afternoon  there  were  signs  of  great  activity  in  the 
arsenal  while  the  Spanish  were  leaving.  The  next  day 
they  had  all  gone,  and  a  force  of  American  marines  was 
put  in  charge. 

The  arsenal  is  built  on  the  end  of  a  long  neck  of  land, 
which  is  quite  narrow,  and  protrudes  from  the  main  body 
of  the  island;  and  the  principal  gate  of  the  arsenal  is 
placed  near  where  the  narrow  neck  of  land  meets  the 
larger  piece  of  ground  on  which  the  arsenal  stands.  The 
headquarters  of  the  marines  was  near  this  gate,  and 
guards  were  stationed  at  the  important  points  of  the 


264     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

arsenal,  the  most  important  point  being,  of  course,  the 
main  gate  itself.  The  Petrel  was  anchored  at  her  station 
near  the  dock,  and  the  larger  vessels  of  the  fleet  lay  not 
far  to  the  northward,  in  deeper  water. 

The  next  afternoon  a  party  went  ashore  at  the  arsenal 
from  some  of  the  ships,  on  what  mission  we  of  the  Petrel 
did  not  know.  We  saw  them  ashore  behind  some  trees, 
and  after  a  while  they  seemed  to  be  digging.  Then  they 
went  away.  Soon  some  of  them  reappeared,  and  we 
could  see  that  they  were  carrying  some  things  which  they 
seemed  to  throw  into  a  hole;  we  could  also  see  that  they 
had  their  black  neckerchiefs  over  their  mouths  and  noses, 
and  that  they  held  their  heads  away  from  the  things  they 
were  carrying.  This  was  kept  up  for  perhaps  half  an 
hour.  Then  the  party  reappeared  together  and  seemed 
to  dig  again.  Then  they  disappeared  again,  and  soon 
came  down  to  the  landing,  and  got  into  their  boats,  and 
went  past  the  Petrel,  back  to  their  ships.  We  could  see 
that  they  looked  very  much  depressed.  We  learned  aft 
erward  that  they  were  a  burial-party.  A  number  of 
wounded  Spaniards  had  been  taken  to  the  hospital  in  the 
arsenal  and  had  died  there ;  and  when  the  men  from  our 
fleet  buried  them,  they  had  to  protect  their  own  mouths 
and  noses  with  their  black  neckerchiefs. 

Later  that  day  the  captain  sent  for  me  and  said  that 
he  wished  me  to  go  on  board  the  Manila  that  evening,  stay 
on  board  all  night,  and  try  to  get  her  off  next  morning. 
The  Manila  was  a  Spanish  transport  nearly  twice  as  large 
as  the  Petrel,  and  had  been  run  aground  in  soft  mud  in 
Bacoor  Bay,  a  considerable  distance  ahead  of  where  the 
Petrel  lay.  The  captain  told  me  to  pick  as  many  men  as 
I  needed  for  the  deck  force,  and  told  Hall  to  pick  the 
engineer's  force.  I  do  not  remember  how  many  men 
Hall  and  I  took;  but  I  know  our  idea  was  rather  to  get 
trustworthy  men  than  to  get  many,  for  we  might  be  at 
tacked.  So  about  seven  o'clock  that  evening,  after  din 
ner,  we  went  alongside  the  Manila,  and  I  walked  up  the 
long  ladder  that  hung  down  to  the  water  to  take  my  first 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  265 

command,  followed  by  Hall  and  perhaps  forty  men,  all 
well  armed. 

I  found  the  Manila  was  just  beyond  the  outer  wall  of 
the  arsenal,  close  to  the  shore,  right  opposite  the  neck  of 
land  that  connected  the  arsenal  with  the  mainland  of  the 
island,  and  near  a  large  village ;  but  the  burned  ships  were 
near,  and  when  a  whiff  of  air  came  from  their  direction, 
I  could  smell  burned  wood.  We  searched  the  ship  thor 
oughly  to  see  if  there  were  any  men  concealed  on  board, 
or  if  there  were  any  slow  matches  laid  to  blow  up  the 
magazines. 

Hall  sent  some  of  his  party  below  to  start  fires  under 
the  boilers,  and  then  we  searched  for  ammunition  for  the 
various  guns  about  the  deck,  which  were  mostly  Norden- 
feldts  of  different  kinds.  We  found  a  good  deal  of  am 
munition  scattered  about  near  one  of  the  magazines,  and 
we  put  plenty  of  it  behind  the  guns.  The  guns  were  in 
good  condition  and  easily  got  ready. 

On  going  to  the  state-rooms,  of  which  there  were  a 
number,  we  found  basins  of  blood  and  water,  with  sponges 
in  them,  pieces  of  lint  stained  with  pus  and  blood,  and 
rumpled  beds,  with  bloody  mattresses,  which  showed  that 
wounded  men  had  been  cared  for  in  them.  On  the  main- 
deck  were  about  thirty  cows.  These  cows  did  not  have 
the  peaceful  air  that  most  cows  have,  but  were  very  much 
excited,  and  kept  running  about,  so  that  we  had  to  pen 
them  in  the  forward  part  of  the  deck. 

By  the  time  we  had  got  the  ammunition  up  and  the  guns 
ready  it  was  nearly  dark;  so  Hall  and  I  had  our  mat 
tresses  spread  out  in  the  chart-room,  which  was  on  the 
upper  deck,  under  the  bridge,  because  we  would  get  the 
most  air  there.  I  had  my  mattress  put  on  the  table,  and 
Hall  had  his  put  on  the  deck. 

Before  turning  in,  I  went  on  the  bridge  and  took  a 
look  around.  It  was  dark  now  and  absolutely  quiet, 
except  for  the  continuous  barking  of  dogs  on  shore  and 
the  frequent  reports  of  muskets.  I  have  never  known 
why  there  was  so  much  firing  that  night.  From  the 


266     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

bridge  I  tried  to  see  where  the  firing  came  from,  but  I 
could  only  make  out  that  some  came  from  the  arsenal,  but 
that  most  of  it  seemed  to  come  from  the  village.  I  could 
occasionally  see  the  flashes,  and  sometimes  I  heard  the 
whistle  of  a  bullet. 

The  village  was  on  our  starboard  side,  and  the  smolder 
ing  flames  of  the  Spanish  ships  were  on  our  port  side. 
Directly  ahead  there  was  nothing  but  darkness.  The 
search-lights  of  our  ship  did  not  light  up  the  water  ahead 
of  us,  but  I  could  discern  a  number  of  boats  moving  about 
there,  and  I  wondered  if  some  Spaniards  were  in  them, 
getting  ready  to  board  us  and  have  revenge.  To  the 
northward — that  is,  astern — I  thought  I  could  see  the 
form  of  the  Petrel.  Beyond  her  were  our  other  ships, 
but  I  could  not  see  them.  The  main  thing  that  attracted 
my  attention  and  held  it  was  the  mosquitos.  They  were 
not  only  numerous,  but  aggressive ;  and  I  saw  one  sentry 
whom  I  had  put  on  the  bridge  striking  at  them  with  his 
musket. 

After  making  a  tour  of  the  dark  and  silent  ship  and 
cautioning  the  sentries,  I  went  to  the  chart-room  and 
turned  in  on  the  table.  The  mosquitos  bothered  me  a 
great  deal,  and  so  did  the  occasional  reports  of  muskets 
and  the  memory  of  the  boats;  but  I  was  tired  and  soon 
fell  into  a  sleep. 

How  long  I  slept  I  do  not  know,  but  I  was  awakened 
by  an  intermittent,  jerky  sound,  which  was  low  in  tone, 
but  very  loud.  I  got  up  and  went  out  on  the  deck,  and 
saw  the  quartermaster  and  corporal  of  the  guard  there, 
and  asked  them  what  was  the  matter.  One  of  them  said : 

"It  's  the  steam  whistle,  sir." 

I  said : 

"Why  don't  you  stop  it?"  and  he  replied  that  they  did 
not  know  what  was  the  matter  with  it. 

Just  then  Hall  cried  out : 

"Here  it  is;  some  one  has  made  fast  an  awning-stop 
to  the  steam  whistle." 

We  found  this  was  the  case.    In  securing  the  awning 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  267 

that  evening,  somebody  had  tied  an  awning-stop  to  the 
line  that  pulled  the  whistle.  It  made  no  trouble  then; 
but  afterward  steam  formed,  and  rose  in  the  steam  pipe 
to  the  valve  that  was  controlled  by  the  line  to  which  the 
awning-stop  was  made  fast.  Later  a  little  breeze  sprang 
up  and  flapped  the  awning,  so  that  the  awning-stop  pulled 
at  the  whistle-line  irregularly.  The  result  was  a  most 
extraordinary  gasping  and  coughing  by  the  steam  whistle. 
We  heard  afterward  that  this  alarmed  the  Petrel,  and 
that  she  was  about  to  send  a  relief  party  to  our  rescue 
when  the  noise  ceased. 

I  turned  in  again,  but  scarcely  had  I  got  asleep  when  I 
was  roused  by  what  sounded  like  a  charge  of  cavalry. 
On  investigation  I  found  the  cows  had  broken  loose,  and 
it  took  all  hands  to  get  them  back  where  they  belonged. 
Again  I  turned  in  and  went  to  sleep,  but  only  to  be  awak 
ened  by  a  voice  calling  me  softly.  I  did  not  pay  much 
attention  at  first ;  but  the  call  was  repeated,  until  I  finally 
roused  myself  and  looked  up,  and  saw  the  corporal  of 
the  guard,  holding  a  dim  lantern  in  his  hand. 

"Sir,  the  men  have  broken  into  the  wine-locker,"  he 
whispered. 

Now,  this  was  important,  so  I  got  up  and  put  on  my 
shoes  and  went  down  the  ladder  to  the  main-deck,  and 
then  groped  down  a  long,  wide,  old  wooden  ladder  that 
went  into  the  hold. 

" Right  ahead  of  you,  sir,"  said  the  corporal ;  so  I  went 
ahead,  and  finally  found  a  door  which  I  could  see  by  the 
light  of  the  corporal's  lantern  behind.  Going  through 
this  door,  I  found  myself  in  a  large  compartment  in  which 
there  were  a  great  many  barrels,  and  I  could  see  a  man, 
with  his  back  to  me,  stooping  over.  He  heard  me  com 
ing,  and,  speaking  over  his  shoulder,  said: 

"Ah,  birdie,  you  on  to  the  game?" 

I  answered  that  I  was  not,  and  asked  him  what  the 
game  was.  He  recognized  my  voice  and  said : 

"Oh,  excuse  me,  Mr.  Fiske,  for  speaking  to  you  in  that 
way,  sir.  I  did  n  't  know  it  was  you,  sir ;  but  us  men  in 


268     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  engineer  department  got  thirsty,  and  we  heard  there 
was  some  good  water  here  in  casks,  sir,  and  so  I  came 
here  to  get  some.  But  it  looks  to  me  as  if  was  n't  water, 
sir,  but  wine." 

The  man's  presence  of  mind  filled  me  with  admiration, 
and  so  I  told  him  merely  to  pour  out  his  wine  on  the  deck 
and  go  back  to  his  work.  I  then  had  the  corporal  get  an 
ax  and  break  in  the  head  of  the  barrel.  And  I  saw  thir 
ty-three  gallons  of  the  delicious  wine  of  Spain  flow  all 
over  the  dirty  deck  and  trickle  down  into  the  bilge,  and 
smelt  its  delightful  fragrance. 

I  ascended  to  the  bridge  and  watched  the  boats  moving 
about  in  the  dim  light,  and  then  went  back  to  bed  again ; 
but  had  not  slept  very  long  when  daylight  came.  By  this 
time  the  men  were  about  the  deck  drinking  their  coffee 
and  making  their  slender  breakfast.  Hall  reported  that 
he  had  steam  on  the  engine  and  would  like  to  turn  the 
engine  over.  We  went  on  the  forecastle  then  to  see  how 
the  anchor  gear  looked.  We  found  it  in  good  condition, 
and  got  the  anchor  up  without  difficulty.  Why  the  Span 
iards  had  taken  the  trouble  to  anchor  the  ship  I  do  not 
know ;  for  she  was  hard  and  fast  aground. 

When  looking  about  the  deck  we  had  seen  a  long  trough 
under  a  tank  on  the  starboard  side,  and  a  pipe  above  the 
tank,  and  while  we  were  looking  at  the  trough,  we  had 
noticed  that  the  cows  were  even  more  restless  than  usual, 
and  tried  to  get  to  the  trough.  After  getting  the  anchor, 
it  suddenly  occurred  to  us  that  perhaps  the  cows  were 
thirsty,  and  that  it  was  this  trough  from  which  they  used 
to  drink.  So  we  investigated,  and  found  that  the  pipe 
led  to  the  tank  from  a  pump;  and  then  I  sent  a  couple 
of  men  to  pump  water.  At  the  sight  of  the  water  the 
cows  got  completely  beyond  our  control  and  rushed  to 
the  water,  the  strong  ones  shoving  the  weaker  aside.  I 
never  before  got  such  a  clear  idea  of  wrhat  a  torture 
thirst  must  be.  The  cows  that  saw  the  water,  and  could 
not  reach  it,  seemed  to  be  in  agony;  those  that  drank 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  269 

seemed  to  feel  that  bliss  which  only  those  who  have  been 
suddenly  freed  from  awful  pain  can  understand. 

Hall  said  that  the  ship  was  so  deep  in  the  mud  that  the 
injection-valve,  where  the  water  came  in  for  the  con 
denser,  was  covered  with  mud,  and  that  the  circulating- 
pump  was  not  independent,  but  connected  to  the  main  en 
gine  ;  so  that  he  could  not  pump  water  through  the  con 
denser  except  by  turning  the  main  engine.  He  then  sug 
gested  that  by  backing  and  going  ahead  alternately  he 
could  pump  in  mud  and  water  through  the  injection-valve, 
and  thus  make  a  kind  of  trough  immediately  outside  the 
injection-valve,  so  that  afterward  clear  water  could  come 
in,  which  the  circulating-pump  would  force  through  the 
condenser.  This  would  clean  out  the  mud,  and  the  con 
denser  would  then  be  ready  for  work.  This  was  done 
for  a  while,  until  Hall  finally  reported  that  clean  water 
was  coming  out  the  outboard  delivery-valve,  showing  that 
the  condenser  had  been  washed  out. 

It  must  have  been  about  seven  o'clock  when  Hall  re 
ported  that  everything  was  ready  with  the  engines.  I 
shoved  the  engine  telegraph  to  full  speed  astern,  and, 
to  my  delight,  the  ship  began  to  move,  slowly  at  first,  then 
faster  and  faster.  The  Petrel's  chief  quartermaster, 
Ecklund,  was  at  the  wheel;  and  as  soon  as  the  ship  got 
out  of  the  mud,  I  found  she  steered  beautifully  going 
astern.  We  gathered  headway  rapidly,  and  by  the  time 
that  we  had  passed  the  quarter  of  a  mile  which  separated 
us  from  the  Petrel,  we  were  going  through  the  water  at  a 
fine  rate.  Thinking  what  a  pretty  sight  this  prize  would 
make  as  seen  from  the  Petrel,  I  steered  as  close  to  her 
as  I  could  until  I  got  just  abreast  of  her  stern,  and  then 
starboarded  the  helm,  rounded  to  astern  of  her,  and  then 
went  ahead  with  port  helm,  headed  for  the  Boston,  about 
half  a  mile  away.  Five  minutes  later  we  anchored  close 
to  the  Boston;  Captain  Wildes  took  the  Manila  under  his 
charge,  and  we  all  went  back  to  the  Petrel. 

About  the  middle  of  July  it  seemed  to  some  of  us  that 


270     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIEAL 

matters  were  becoming  critical  and  that  Admiral  Dewey 
was  getting  into  a  difficult  position,  and  I  heard  several 
prophecies  that  he  would  lose  his  reputation  where  he 
made  it — in  Manila  Bay. 

In  addition  to  our  troubles  with  the  Spaniards,  we 
had  also  our  troubles  with  the  Filipinos.  We  knew  that 
the  powers  of  Europe  were  not  at  all  sure  yet  as  to 
whether  or  not  they  would  intervene  to  prevent  the  United 
States  from  taking  the  Philippines.  We  knew  that  they 
would  be  very  much  more  likely  to  intervene  if  we  made 
any  mistakes,  or  got  into  any  trouble  with  the  Filipinos 
or  with  any  other  nation,  than  if  we  were  successful  in 
everything;  consequently  it  was  very  desirable  to  us  that 
everything  should  run  smoothly.  We  knew  that  some  of 
the  foreign  powers  were  watching  us  very  closely,  and 
we  heard  that  Prince  Henry  had  said  to  Consul  Goodnow 
in  Shanghai,  "The  powers  will  not  permit  you  to  keep  the 
Philippines." 

We  also  knew  that  Prince  Henry  was  brother  to  the 
kaiser,  and  inferred  that  as  he  was  on  duty  in  Asia  in 
command  of  a  squadron,  his  utterances  were  probably 
official. 

It  was  clear  to  us,  therefore,  that  Admiral  Dewey  had 
his  hands  full,  and  it  is  not  surprising  that  we  viewed  with 
much  anxiety  the  strange  actions  of  a  German  squadron 
in  the  bay.  We  were  holding  an  effective  blockade  of 
Manila  Bay  and  were  a  recognized  belligerent.  There 
fore,  by  all  the  rules  of  war  and  military  courtesy  Manila 
Bay  was  ours,  and  Admiral  Dewey  had  the  war  right 
and  duty  to  do  everything  in  the  bay  that  he  thought 
necessary  to  the  successful  prosecution  of  the  war.  One 
thing  was  the  boarding  of  every  vessel,  war  vessel  or 
merchant  vessel,  that  came  into  the  harbor.  What  was 
our  astonishment  on  hearing  that  the  admiral  of  the 
German  fleet  objected  to  his  ships  being  boarded,  and 
that  he  had  a  council  of  war  on  board  his  flag-ship  at 
which  the  captains  of  the  war-ships  of  the  various  neu 
tral  nations  were  present,  and  at  which  he  proposed  the 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  271 

question  to  each  one,  "  Would  you  permit  your  vessel  to 
be  searched  by  a  foreign  man-of-war!"  A  lieutenant 
of  the  British  ship  Immortalite  told  me  that  Captain  Sir 
Edward  Chichester,  the  captain  of  the  Immortalite,  was 
the  first  one  to  whom  this  question  was  addressed,  and 
he  answered  that  he  was  not  the  junior  at  the  table,  and 
therefore  would  not  answer  first.  The  officers  answered 
afterward  in  the  inverse  order  of  their  rank,  each  one, 
including  Chichester,  saying,  "No."  Then  Chichester 
said: 

"It  is  not  a  question  of  being  searched;  it  is  simply  a 
question  of  being  boarded  on  coming  into  a  blockaded 
harbor  in  time  of  war  by  the  admiral  of  the  blockading 
fleet.  The  admiral  has  a  perfect  right  to  board  all  neu 
tral  men-of-war."  And  he  opened  an  official  book,  which 
he  had  brought  with  him  from  his  ship,  from  which  he 
read  his  authority  for  this  statement. 

Then  it  was  very  confusing,  when  we  were  using  our 
search-lights  at  night,  to  have  the  German  fleet  use  their 
search-lights  at  the  same  time.  That  they  knew  that 
their  relations  with  the  Americans  were  strained  is  shown 
by  the  fact,  told  us  later  by  one  of  their  officers,  that  on 
one  occasion  one  of  their  ships,  which  had  been  outside 
for  a  short  time,  came  into  the  bay  cleared  for  action. 
But  perhaps  the  thing  that  caused  us  the  most  surprise 
was  one  of  their  ships  preventing  Aguinaldo  from  taking 
Isla  Grande  in  Subig  Bay.  Admiral  Dewey  then  sent 
the  Raleigh  and  Concord  to  take  it.  It  was  reported  in 
the  bay  that  the  German  admiral  endeavored  to  get  Ad 
miral  Dewey  to  commit  himself  in  regard  to  the  Filipinos 
then  by  asking  him,  with  relation  to  this  incident,  whether 
or  not  he  recognized  the  Filipino  flag. 

The  reason  for  the  actions  of  the  German  fleet  was  a 
point  much  debated  by  us  in  the  Petrel.  One  side  held 
that  they  were  not  really  trying  to  make  things  difficult 
for  the  Americans,  but  that  from  long  habit  they  had 
come  to  regard  Americans  as  of  small  account,  and  were 
simply  acting  thoughtlessly. 


272     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  KEAB-ADMIBAL 

This  side  had  a  very  strong  case,  for  Europeans  did 
not  then  have  much  respect  for  Americans  as  a  naval  peo 
ple  or  as  a  nation.  This  may  seem  a  strong  statement, 
but  for  years  American  officers  in  all  parts  of  the  world 
had  been  smarting  under  the  light  way  in  which  they  and 
the  United  States  were  regarded  by  Europeans.  It  was 
not  that  we  were  treated  with  positive  discourtesy  by 
European  officers  and  European  people,  but  that  we  were 
patronized.  Most  Europeans  had  no  adequate  idea  of 
the  immensity  of  the  United  States,  and  even  those  who 
did  regarded  the  United  States  as  a  collection  of  separate 
States,  held  together  very  loosely  in  a  sort  of  confeder 
ation,  without  any  real  national  organization,  and  there 
fore  without  any  national  strength.  They  had  been  ac 
customed  to  see  our  miserable  ships  in  different  parts  of 
the  world ;  and  being  used  from  childhood  to  the  idea  that 
a  war-ship  represents  her  country,  and  that  one  can  tell 
from  a  war-ship  what  kind  of  country  she  belongs  to,  they 
had  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  United  States  and 
her  people,  while  industrious,  moral,  and  rich  in  a  mate 
rial  sense,  were  not  people  who  belonged  in  the  polite 
society  of  nations.  And  we  knew  that  for  years  in  Euro 
pean  courts  American  ministers  were  not  expected  to  act 
like  the  ministers  and  ambassadors  of  European  coun 
tries,  and  that  some  European  courts  had  instructed  their 
ministers  and  ambassadors  to  tolerate  certain  rudenesses 
in  American  ministers  that  they  would  not  tolerate  in 
other  ministers. 

The  other  side  in  this  argument  insisted  that  the  Ger 
man  fleet  was  carefully  trying  to  exasperate  Admiral 
Dewey  into  committing  some  indignant  act  that  would 
put  him  in  the  wrong,  and  stir  up  a  hostile  feeling  against 
him  among  the  other  men-of-war  in  the  harbor;  that,  as 
one  of  them  expressed  it,  "they  were  putting  stumbling- 
blocks  for  him  to  trip  over."  They  quoted  the  rude 
remark  of  Prince  Henry  to  Consul  Goodnow  in  Shanghai, 
that  the  powers  would  not  permit  the  United  States  to 
keep  the  Philippines,  and  pointed  out  that  it  was  known 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  273 

that  his  country  wanted  larger  trade  in  Asia  and  better 
means  of  influence.  They  asserted  that  she  was  entering 
into  competition  in  trade  in  Asia,  but  was  handicapped 
by  having  little  land  there,  and  that  it  would  be  very  un 
fortunate  for  her  trade  if  the  United  States  should  get 
the  Philippines,  because  the  United  States  would  then 
have  a  base  that  would  help  immensely  American  trade 
and  influence.  They  asserted  his  country  was  known  to 
be  very  ambitious ;  that  she  had  stood  before  the  world 
for  many  years  as  the  nation  that  had  made  greater  ad 
vances  in  music,  mathematics,  physical  science,  and  mili 
tary  science  than  any  other  nation;  that  she  combined 
more  than  any  other  nation  the  qualities  of  profound 
thought,  inventiveness,  thoroughness,  courage,  and  phy 
sical  health,  and  that  within  the  last  few  years  she 
had  turned  herself  toward  naval  matters  and  had  there 
shown  the  same  superlative  ability  that  she  had  shown 
in  all  other  things  that  she  had  tried,  but  that  her  terri 
tory  was  too  small  to  support  her  people,  that  it  was 
desirable  for  her  that  her  trade  should  grow;  and  that 
she  did  not  want  any  more  competition  in  Asian  trade 
than  she  already  had. 

This  side  also  held  that,  whatever  might  have  been  the 
feelings  of  the  other  officers,  the  steps  taken  by  the  Ger 
man  admiral  were  taken  in  obedience  to  orders  from  his 
Government ;  and,  in  fact,  that  no  one  having  knowledge 
of  the  admirably  exact  methods  of  their  discipline  could 
believe  that  steps  involving  such  grave  international  is 
sues  could  possibly  have  been  taken  otherwise ;  and  that, 
since  these  steps  were  very  embarrassing  to  the  Ameri 
can  fleet  when  it  was  engaged  in  war,  and  were  taken  by 
a  fleet  that  professed  to  be  a  friendly  neutral,  and  was 
enjoying  the  privileges  of  a  friendly  neutral  in  a  block 
aded  port,  they  bore  some  slight  resemblance  to  the  act 
of  a  man  who,  being  privileged  to  be  present  at  a  duel 
as  a  friend  of  both  contestants,  should  jar  the  elbow  of 
one  contestant  at  the  instant  he  fired  his  pistol. 

I  remember  that  Admiral  Dewey  came  alongside  of  the 


274     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAE-ADMIBAL 

Petrel  one  forenoon,  and  seeing  Commander  Wood  stand 
ing  on  the  poop,  said  with  that  manner  which  suggests 
a  gentleman  asking  a  lady  for  a  dance:  "Good  morn 
ing,  Wood.  I  should  be  very  glad  if  you  would  come 
ashore  to  the  arsenal  with  me  and  take  a  walk."  The 
captain  got  into  the  admiral's  barge,  and  they  went  to 
gether  to  the  arsenal.  Not  very  long  afterward  they 
came  back,  and  the  admiral  came  on  board  with  the  cap 
tain  and  took  lunch  in  the  cabin.  Later  he  sat  on  the 
poop,  and  some  of  us  talked  at  intervals  with  him.  Of 
course  we  observed  him  somewhat  anxiously,  but  he 
seemed  to  have  nothing  whatever  on  his  mind,  and  talked 
with  us  about  anything.  Captain  Wood,  however,  seemed 
to  have  something  on  his  mind. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

THE   CAPTURE    OF    MANILA   CITY 

ON  the  morning  of  August  13,  after  the  decks  were 
cleaned  and  the  bright  work  polished,  the  men  went 
to  breakfast  at  half  past  seven.  The  ship  was  already 
cleared  for  action.  Ammunition  was  on  deck,  and  every 
thing  was  ready.  By  half  past  eight  everybody  had  had 
his  breakfast  and  was  standing  by.  We  knew  by  this 
time  that  we  were  to  get  under  way  at  nine  o'clock  and 
steam  south  directly  in  front  of  the  guns  of  the  city  until 
we  should  get  opposite  Fort  San  Antonio,  the  extreme 
southern  end  of  the  defenses  of  Manila,  about  two  miles 
distant  from  our  anchorage.  The  German  and  French 
men-of-war  were  lying  to  the  northwest,  out  of  range  of 
the  guns  of  Manila.  The  Concord  was  about  two  miles 
north  of  the  Petrel,  opposite  the  village  of  Tondo,  where 
the  entrenchments  of  the  Spanish  came  down  to  the  bay, 
and  while  not  exactly  out  of  range  of  the  Manila  guns, 
was  rather  over  on  one  side.  The  American  fleet  and 
the  American  transports  could  be  seen  about  seven  miles 
to  the  south,  off  Cavite,  and  near  them  were  the  English 
and  Japanese  men-of-war.  There  was  a  great  deal  of 
smoke  coming  from  the  American  ships  off  Cavite,  and 
we  knew  that,  even  if  the  Spaniards  in  Manila  had  not 
received  notice  that  the  American  fleet  was  about  to  at 
tack  them,  this  unusual  amount  of  smoke  would  tell  them 
so. 

I  went  up  on  the  bridge  about  half  past  eight.  Look 
ing  through  a  spy-glass,  I  could  see  plainly  the  whole 
front  of  the  batteries  of  Manila.  Directly  to  the  east  of 
us,  near  the  Pasig  River,  which  came  down  through 
Manila  to  the  bay,  was  one  of  the  large  9.2-inch  guns. 

275 


276     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

Extending  to  our  right — that  is,  toward  the  south — was 
the  long  wall  of  Manila  proper,  running  perhaps  half  a 
mile.  In  openings  cut  in  this  wall  I  could  see  very  many 
small  cannon.  Near  the  water  was  a  long  line  of  some 
kind  of  fortification.  I  could  see  two  very  large  guns 
pointing  over  this  fortification,  besides  some  smaller  guns. 
Still  farther  to  the  right,  perhaps  half  a  mile  south  of 
the  end  of  the  wall  of  the  city,  at  the  end  of  the  Luneta, 
was  another  very  large  gun.  I  could  see  signs  of  a  great 
deal  of  stirring  about.  Of  course  I  could  not  see  behind 
the  walls  of  the  city  of  Manila  proper,  but  I  could  get  a 
good  view  of  the  ground  in  the  neighborhood  of  various 
guns,  and  about  these  guns  I  could  discern  groups  of 
soldiers.  It  was  plain  that  the  people  in  Manila  knew 
what  was  about  to  happen  and  that  the  soldiers  had  taken 
their  stations. 

Commander  Wood  soon  came  on  the  bridge,  and  we 
discussed  the  situation.  I  have  never  known  how  much 
he  knew  about  what  was  to  be  done,  but  I  do  not  think 
that  he  knew  much  more  about  it  than  I  did.  He  was 
perfectly  self-possessed  and  calm,  and  I  said  to  him: 

"I  hope  they  will  let  the  Petrel  get  down  to  her  posi 
tion  off  Fort  San  Antonio  before  the  rest  of  the  fleet  be 
gins  to  close  in." 

"Yes,  I  hope  so,  too,"  he  answered. 

I  handed  him  the  telescope,  and  pointed  out  where  he 
could  see  the  groups  of  soldiers  gathered  about  the  guns. 
He  examined  them  carefully,  and  handed  the  glass  back 
to  me,  but  said  nothing.  I  said  to  him : 

"I  bet  one  of  the  officers  last  night  a  dollar  that  we 
would  not  be  hit  to-day  even  with  a  brick,  and  I  expect 
to  win  the  bet." 

He  said  he  thought  I  would  win  the  bet,  and  added 
that  the  Spaniards,  if  they  chose,  could  sink  us  right 
where  we  were  in  five  minutes,  and  that  not  a  soul  on 
board  would  last  five  minutes  longer;  but  that  he  felt 
sure  himself  that,  if  the  Spaniards  had  wanted  to  do 
that,  they  would  have  done  it  before  now.  I  said  I 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  MANILA  CITY         277 

agreed  with  him  entirely,  but  I  think  both  of  us  awaited 
the  coming  minutes  with  a  good  deal  of  anxiety. 

Soon  after,  a  signal  flew  out  from  the  flag-ship,  "Pre 
pare  to  get  under  way." 

I  must  admit  that  I  felt  a  cold  feeling  inside  when 
I  saw  that  this  signal  was  made  to  the  whole  fleet  and 
not  to  us  alone,  but  I  said  to  myself  that  perhaps  the 
signal  would  be  modified  and  that  we  should  be  given 
a  chance  to  get  down  to  our  station  before  the  other  ships 
moved.  If  this  was  done,  I  thought  that  we  should 
probably  not  be  shot  at ;  but  I  thought  that  if  we  started 
to  pass  in  front  of  all  those  guns,  just  when  the  rest  of 
the  fleet  started  toward  them  from  Cavite,  our  going 
would  look  like  part  of  a  hostile  demonstration,  and  we 
should  be  treated  accordingly. 

Our  anchor  was  already  up,  and  soon  the  signal  to 
get  under  way  was  hauled  down.  The  captain  moved 
the  engine  telegraph  to  full  speed  ahead.  Somebody 
said: 

"Bradley,  you  are  going  to  lose  your  bet." 

"No,  I  think  not,"  I  said,  but  in  my  heart  I  thought  I 
should. 

The  Petrel  began  to  forge  ahead  slowly.  The  captain, 
Hughes,  and  I  were  on  the  bridge,  and  the  men  were  at 
their  battle-stations  behind  their  guns.  The  guns  were 
loaded,  and  the  gun  captains  were  standing  behind  them, 
looking  over  the  gun-sights  toward  the  guns  of  Manila. 
Through  the  glass  I  could  see  a  round  hole  in  one  of  the 
big  guns,  showing  that  the  gun  was  pointed  directly  at 
us ;  and  as  we  moved  along,  I  could  see  that  the  hole  re 
mained  just  as  round  as  at  first,  showing  that  the  Span 
iards  were  keeping  the  gun  continually  pointed  at  us. 
We  seemed  to  go  extremely  slow  past  all  those  guns, 
big  and  little,  especially  at  first;  but  in  about  five  min 
utes  we  said  to  ourselves  that  if  the  Spaniards  were  go 
ing  to  shoot  at  us,  they  would  have  done  it  already  and, 
after  that,  we  seemed  to  go  faster. 

The  weather  had  been  miserable  all  the  morning.    It 


278     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

now  began  to  rain  slowly,  so  that  things  on  shore  and 
on  the  water  looked  less  clear;  but  we  could  see  our 
fleet  gradually  approaching  the  point  toward  which  we 
were  heading — a  point  near  Fort  San  Antonio,  and  we 
recognized  the  fact  that  events  were  coming  to  a  crisis. 

I  have  heard  it  stated  since  that  Captain  Sir  Edward 
Chichester  now  moved  the  Immortalite  between  the 
American  and  the  German  fleets,  and  that  historians 
have  accepted  it  as  a  fact.  I  did  not  notice  it  at  the  time. 
I  have  never  heard  of  any  one  else  who  noticed  it,  and  I 
am  sure  it  never  happened. 

The  Petrel  took  up  a  position  southwest  of  Fort  San 
Antonio,  perhaps  twenty-five  hundred  yards  away;  I  do 
not  remember  exactly.  The  Olympia  and  Raleigh  were 
northwest  of  us  in  deeper  water,  while  the  Boston, 
Charleston,  and  Baltimore  were  farther  out  in  the  bay. 
The  Concord  remained  at  her  position  off  the  northern 
end  of  the  defenses  of  Manila.  The  Callao,  which  was 
now  a  United  States  gunboat,  commanded  by  Lieutenant 
Tappan,  and  the  tug  Barcelo,  were  inshore  of  the  Petrel, 
standing  by  to  support  the  left  flank  of  our  troops,  when 
they  would  advance  toward  the  north,  to  take  Fort  San 
Antonio.  The  monitor  Monterey,  with  her  twelve-inch 
and  ten-inch  guns  and  her  heavy  armor,  took  up  her 
position  directly  in  front  of  the  walled  city,  and  we  looked 
forward  with  interest  to  seeing  what  would  happen  when 
her  eight-hundred-and-fifty-pound  shell  would  begin  to 
strike  the  fortifications. 

Imagine  our  disgust  afterward  when  we  found  that  the 
officers  of  the  Monterey  had  known  for  three  days  that 
there  would  be  no  fight,  and  that  Admiral  Dewey  had 
told  Captain  Leutze  that  the  governor-general  had  tried 
to  get  him  to  allow  the  Spaniards  to  fire  a  few  shots  at 
the  American  fleet  "to  save  their  honor,"  but  that  he 
(Dewey)  had  refused  to  be  a  party  to  any  such  proceed 
ings  as  far  as  his  fleet  was  concerned,  though  he  had  not 
thought  it  his  business  to  object  to  the  Spaniards'  firing 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  MANILA  CITY          279 

as  much  at  the  American  soldiers  as  they  wished.  So  the 
Monterey  was  cleared  for  action,  with  orders  to  shell  the 
9.2-inch  Spanish  guns  and  the  city  behind  them  if  any 
shot  was  fired  at  one  of  Dewey's  ships.  No  such  shot  was 
fired,  of  course,  and  the  Monterey  remained  a  passive 
spectator  of  the  curious  scene. 

We  could  not  see  any  sign  of  the  American  soldiers  on 
shore,  but  we  had  heard  that  General  Greene  had  ad 
vanced  his  whole  force  to  the  entrenchments  just  north 
of  the  convent,  and  that  General  MacArthur  had  taken 
possession  of  the  Filipino  entrenchments  in  front  of 
Blockhouse  No.  14;  so  that  the  American  forces  faced 
all  that  part  of  the  Spanish  forces  that  extended  from 
Fort  San  Antonio  eastward  to  Blockhouse  No.  14.  About 
two  hundred  yards  south  of  the  fort  a  small  river  ran  be 
tween  the  Spanish  and  the  American  lines.  It  had  been 
supposed  to  be  unfordable;  but  Major  Franklin  Bell  had 
ascertained  that  it  was  fordable  by  the  simple  process  of 
fording  it  himself.  This  was  a  very  brave  thing  to  do, 
and  a  very  sensible  one ;  and  I  think  it  was  the  first  of  a 
remarkable  series  of  brave  and  sensible  things  which  he 
did  in  the  Philippines,  and  which  made  him  a  brigadier. 

At  half  past  nine  the  Olympia  opened  fire  on  Fort 
San  Antonio.  The  Raleigh,  Baltimore,  and  Petrel  fol 
lowed  instantly.  The  critical  moment  had  come,  or, 
rather,  we  thought  it  had,  and  we  of  the  Petrel  braced 
ourselves  to  get  our  dose. 

The  little  ship  went  ahead  with  a  vim,  and  shook  all 
over  with  the  violence  of  her  exertions.  But  I  could  not 
locate  her  very  satisfactorily  on  the  chart,  because  there 
was  no  landmark  near  except  the  fort,  from  which  I 
could  not  take  a  good  angle.  So  I  had  to  do  a  good  deal 
of  guessing  about  her  position,  and  therefore  a  good  deal 
of  guessing  about  the  range,  and  I  wished  with  all  my 
heart  that  the  Petrel  had  my  range-finder.  Still,  we 
banged  away,  and  fired  a  great  many  projectiles.  We 
could  not  tell  where  they  went  except  when  we  saw  some 


280     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

drop  into  the  water,  but  we  did  the  best  we  could,  and 
perhaps  some  of  them  hit  the  fort.  After  this  had  gone 
on  about  ten  minutes,  I  said  to  the  captain : 

" Captain,  I  shouldn't  be  surprised  if  this  whole  per 
formance  was  a  sham.  Don't  you  notice  how  slowly  the 
Olympia  is  firing?  And  I  don't  think  she  is  firing  her 
eight-inch  at  all.  Besides,  I  just  saw  a  signal  from 
Manila,  and  I  have  not  seen  the  Monterey  fire  at  all,  and 
no  one  has  fired  at  us." 

"Yes,  I  shouldn't  be  surprised  if  it  were  all  a  sham," 
said  the  captain,  with  a  smile. 

During  the  battle  of  May  1  the  gun-fire  of  the  Petrel 
had  gone  like  clockwork,  but  this  day  the  performance 
was  very  unsatisfactory.  We  found  a  great  deal  of 
trouble  in  keeping  our  position  and  in  getting  our  guns  to 
bear  well.  The  difference  between  the  two  occasions  was 
that  on  the  first  of  May  the  ships  had  been  kept  going 
through  the  water  all  the  time  at  enough  speed  to  give 
the  captains  good  control  of  them,  but  on  August  13  they 
hardly  had  steerageway.  This  did  not  make  quite  so 
much  difference  to  the  ships  that  had  twin  screws ;  but  to 
the  Petrel,  which  had  only  a  single  screw,  it  was  very 
exasperating. 

The  ships  had  banged  away  for  about  an  hour  with 
out  getting  any  reply  at  all,  when  suddenly  we  saw  al 
most  abreast  of  us  a  line  of  soldiers  jumping  apparently 
out  of  the  ground.  These  soldiers  deployed  down  to  the 
beach,  and  then  began  to  advance  in  line  toward  the 
north;  that  is,  toward  Fort  San  Antonio.  Immediately 
the  flag-ship  signaled  to  the  fleet,  "Cease  firing." 

The  line  of  soldiers  advanced  rapidly,  and  we  could 
hear  the  American  field-artillery  somewhere  farther  in 
shore.  Then  the  Spaniards  began  to  reply  from  some 
place  in  front  of  them.  We  could  not  see  any  signs  of 
the  Spaniards  or  even  of  their  smoke,  because  they  used 
smokeless  powder.  The  only  thing  we  could  see  was  the 
long  line  of  our  soldiers  advancing  toward  the  river — 
brown  hats,  blue  bodies,  and  brown  legs.  They  marched 


281 

directly  into  the  river  without  hesitation,  their  supports 
coming  up  behind,  and  quickly  gained  the  opposite  shore. 

All  this  time  there  was  a  lot  of  firing  from  the  Span 
iards,  but  most  of  it  seemed  to  be  farther  inshore  than 
the  fort;  and  we  said  to  ourselves  that  we  probably  had 
driven  the  Spaniards  out  of  the  fort.  Now  we  saw  a 
small  detachment  of  American  troops  dash  forward,  close 
to  the  beach,  after  they  had  forded  the  river.  Then  they 
ran  along  that  side  of  Fort  San  Antonio  which  faced 
the  beach,  turned  to  their  right,  and  disappeared.  In  a 
minute  we  saw  the  Spanish  flag  come  down  and  the 
American  flag  go  up. 

We  could  not  see  much  of  what  happened  after  this, 
but  we  could  tell  from  the  sound  of  the  musketry  and 
artillery  that  the  Spaniards  were  retreating  toward  the 
north — that  is,  toward  the  walled  city — with  great  rapid 
ity. 

The  little  Callao  and  the  little  Barcelo  accompanied 
the  left  flank  of  our  soldiers  as  they  advanced  toward 
the  north,  and  kept  the  Spaniards  back  from  the  water 
front. 

It  was  not  long  after  this  that  we  saw  a  large  white 
flag  on  one  of  the  southern  bastions  of  the  walled  city. 
The  admiral  then  hoisted  the  signal  to  Manila,  "Do  you 
surrender!" 

We  could  not  read  the  reply  made  from  the  city,  but 
we  afterward  learned  that  the  governor-general  asked 
for  a  conference,  and  that  Lieutenant-Colonel  Whittaker 
and  Lieutenant  Brumby,  who  was  Admiral  Dewey's  aid, 
went  ashore  to  see  what  he  wanted,  Brumby  carrying  a 
very  large  American  flag. 

Our  fleet  now  formed  in  front  of  the  city.  Some  time 
later  the  flag-ship  threw  out  a  signal  that  most  of  us 
had  never  seen  before,  and  that  probably  most  of  us  will 
never  see  again,  "The  enemy  has  surrendered." 

The  Spanish  flag  was  still  flying  over  the  city,  and  it 
was  not  hauled  down  and  replaced  by  the  American  flag 
until  five  o'clock  that  afternoon.  We  found  out  after- 


282     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

ward  that  the  Spanish  authorities  agreed  to  surrender 
when  Whittaker  and  Brumby  met  them,  but  that  they 
asked  that  some  United  States  troops  be  sent  up  the 
Pasig  River  and  landed  in  the  walled  city  before  the 
Spanish  flag  was  hauled  down,  in  order  to  preserve  or 
der.  An  Oregon  regiment  was  sent  ashore'  about  four 
o'clock  and  stationed  about  the  city. 

At  five  o'clock  Lieutenant  Brumby  hoisted  the  Ameri 
can  flag  over  Manila,  the  capital  of  the  Philippine  Islands. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

HONG-KONG,   TAKU,    SHANGHAI,    AND   A   GALE   OF   WIND 

WE  received  orders  to  go  to  Hong-Kong  for  dock 
ing  on  September  10;  but  our  orders  were  de 
layed  by  signal  on  September  9,  and  wre  heard  that  the 
cause  was  a  sudden  trouble  with  Aguinaldo.  The  trouble 
must  have  been  smoothed  over  soon,  however,  for  we 
started  on  September  15,  feeling  like  school-boys  off  for 
a  vacation.  We  had  been  in  Manila  Bay  for  nearly  five 
months  without  any  fun  of  any  kind,  and  now  we  saw 
before  us  a  few  days  of  civilization  and  its  pleasures. 

The  trip  was  delightful,  and  when  about  two  o'clock 
in  the  morning  of  the  nineteenth  I  was  called  to  go  on 
the  bridge,  I  saw  ahead  the  revolving-light  of  Waglan 
Island,  which  stands  outside  Hong-Kong.  The  night 
was  clear,  and  there  was  good  daylight  by  half  past  five. 
We  steamed  forward  among  many  islets,  and  soon  passed 
between  the  high  and  rocky  boundaries  of  the  entrance 
to  Hong-Kong. 

At  half  past  six  we  dropped  our  anchor,  and  we  looked 
about  with  delight  on  the  round  bay  full  of  Chinese  junks 
and  sampans,  each  with  its  family  on  board,  and  the 
large  ocean  steamships.  We  looked  over  to  Hong-Kong, 
and  saw  the  familiar  rectangular  buildings,  rising  higher 
and  higher  above  the  water,  and  the  terraces  with  their 
tennis-courts,  and  the  railroad  up  the  steep  mountain 
side. 

At  eight  o  'clock  we  sat  down  to  breakfast  in  the  ward 
room,  and  each  man  found  in  front  of  his  plate  the  morn 
ing  newspaper,  and  each  man  picked  up  his  newspaper 
and  leaned  back  luxuriously  in  his  chair  and  read  it,  and 
felt  that  he  was  in  the  world  again  and  one  of  the  people 
that  lived  in  the  world,  and  not  an  outsider. 

283 


284     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

The  admiral  had  told  the  captain  to  hurry  back  as 
soon  as  possible;  so  we  had  only  four  days  in  which  to 
enjoy  Hong-Kong,  with  our  dinner  at  the  club,  which 
seemed  so  elegant,  and  our  walks  and  our  jinrickishas. 
One  evening  I  dined  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bottenheim  at 
the  Cragieburn,  on  Victoria  Peak.  After  dinner  we 
strolled  about  on  the  splendidly  made  English  walks,  cut 
in  the  solid  rock  and  they  pointed  out  the  beautiful  stone 
summer  residences  and  the  winding  roads  among  the 
trees  and  the  gentle  curves  of  the  hills,  looking  white 
and  soft  in  the  moonlight,  and  the  thousand  lights  in 
the  city  and  the  bay  beneath  us,  and  the  lighthouses  far 
at  sea,  and  the  blue  water  stretching  out  to  the  horizon. 

At  the  end  of  four  days  the  Petrel  was  steaming  out 
again  between  the  magnificent  headlands,  under  the  great 
cannon  and  over  the  submarine  mines  that  guard  the  en 
trance  to  Hong-Kong. 

We  expected  to  take  up  our  old  station  at  Cavite  when 
we  got  back  to  Manila  Bay,  and  we  looked  forward  dully 
to  hot  months  of  swinging  idly  around  our  anchor,  doing 
nothing  at  all.  We  did  do  this  for  a  week,  but  one  after 
noon  Lieutenant  Brumby  came  on  board,  went  into  the 
cabin,  and  stayed  there  about  five  minutes,  and  a  few 
minutes  later  the  captain  came  out  and  said  to  me,  who 
was  acting  executive  officer: 

''Get  the  ship  ready  to  go  to  Taku  to-morrow." 

I  touched  my  cap  and  said,  "Aye,  aye,  sir."  Then 
I  walked  over  to  the  port  side  of  the  quarter-deck,  and 
one  of  the  fellows  said  to  me : 

"What  's  that,  go  to  Taku  to-morrow?" 

"Yes,  I  think  that  's  what  he  said,"  I  replied.  If  the 
captain  had  suddenly  announced  that  we  were  to  go  to 
San  Francisco  to-morrow  it  would  not  have  created  much 
more  astonishment.  Taku  is  the  port  of  Tientsin,  in  the 
extreme  northern  part  of  China,  not  far  from  Peking,  and 
the  change  from  Manila  to  Taku  would  be  tremendous 
in  every  way.  We  knew  that  there  must  be  some  sudden 
trouble  with  the  Chinese,  for  we  had  heard  from  time  to 


A  GALE  OF  WIND  285 

time  that  the  " Boxers"  were  becoming  very  active.  So 
we  said  to  ourselves  that  we  were  through  with  Manila 
and  hot  weather  for  a  while,  and  were  in  for  a  winter  at 
Tientsin.  We  knew  that  many  war-vessels  of  different 
nations  had  often  wintered  at  Tientsin,  lying  there  as 
supports  to  their  legations  in  Peking. 

On  the  evening  of  October  4,  just  at  sunset,  we  steamed 
out,  passing  Corregidor  Island,  and  looked  back  at  the 
noble  outline  of  Manila  Bay,  which  had  been  our  home 
during  many  months  of  vivid  life.  The  weather  was 
very  warm  and  very  beautiful,  and  that  night  and  the 
next  day  we  steamed  quietly  along  and  enjoyed  the  real 
luxury  that  ocean  traveling  sometimes  is. 

But  the  Petrel  was  in  the  place  where  typhoons  are 
the  most  frightful,  and  it  was  the  month  when  they  are 
the  most  frequent ;  so  we  watched  the  weather  keenly. 

October  5  was  very  fine,  and  so  was  the  early  morn 
ing  of  the  sixth;  and  we  said  to  ourselves  that  "Petrel 
luck"  was  keeping  up,  and  that  if  the  weather  would 
only  keep  good  until  we  reached  the  China  coast,  we 
could  get  protection  after  that.  But  later  in  the  morn 
ing  of  the  sixth  the  wind  began  to  freshen,  and  it  fresh 
ened  rapidly;  so  rapidly  indeed  that  in  an  hour  and  a 
half  we  were  in  a  howling  gale. 

We  watched  the  weather  signs  carefully,  and  soon  de 
termined  that  this  was  not  a  typhoon,  but  the  opening  of 
the  northeast  monsoon.  This  relieved  our  minds  a  good 
deal ;  but  still  we  knew  we  were  to  have  a  very  disagree 
able  time,  because  in  the  Formosa  Channel,  where  we 
were,  the  northeast  monsoon  raises  a  tremendous  sea. 

By  nightfall  the  little  Petrel  seemed  to  be  struggling 
for  her  life,  pitching  and  squirming  in  a  frightful  sea, 
while  waves  broke  over  her  and  ran  along  her  decks,  and 
the  rain  came  down  in  sheets,  and  the  wind  made  a  great 
noise  as  it  struck  the  masts  and  rigging. 

Before  I  turned  in  I  made  up  my  mind  to  go  up  on  the 
bridge  and  see  how  Ensign  Fermier,  the  officer  of  the 
deck,  was  getting  on.  So  I  put  on  my  oilskins  and  rub- 


286     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

ber  boots,  and  staggered  up  to  the  bridge,  guiding  my 
self  in  the  darkness  by  the  life-lines.  I  found  Fermier 
holding  on  hard  to  the  stanchions,  his  feet  wide  apart, 
peering  ahead,  where  nothing  but  the  white  of  breaking 
waves  could  be  seen. 

The  waves  were  coming  down  on  the  Petrel  from  the 
direction  of  her  starboard  bow.  As  her  bow  settled  down 
into  the  water,  and  I  watched  the  first  oncoming  wave, 
I  noticed,  as  I  looked  up,  that  the  wave  was  higher  than 
our  heads,  and  I  said  to  myself  that  our  time  had  come 
at  last,  that  the  Petrel  could  not  possibly  rise  to  such  a 
wave  as  that,  that  it  would  fall  down  on  the  ship,  and 
that  would  be  the  last  of  the  Petrel  and  of  us.  But 
Fermier  had  become  used  to  watching  the  high  waves; 
for  he  steadied  himself  with  one  arm  around  a  stanchion 
and  the  other  arm  around  my  neck,  and  put  his  mouth 
close  to  my  ear,  so  I  could  hear  him,  and  sang : 

11  Bother  me  eyes,  the  ship  's  a-sinking; 

Bother  me  eyes,  we  '11  all  be  drowned; 
Bother  me  eyes,  we  '11  go  to  the  bottom ; 

And  bother  me  eyes,  we  '11  never  be  found. ' ' 

It  was  not  very  pleasant  on  the  bridge,  so  I  thought  I 
would  go  down  and  see  if  it  was  pleasant  in  the  wardroom. 
I  held  on  tight  to  the  man-ropes  going  down  the  ladder, 
and  looking  back  over  my  shoulder,  I  saw  Fermier 's 
shoulders  and  head  outlined  against  a  white  wave,  and  I 
felt  sure  that  he  would  be  washed  off  the  bridge.  But 
the  Petrel  rose  to  that  wave,  as  she  had  risen  to  others, 
and  so  I  staggered  down  into  the  wardroom.  There  were 
four  officers  there,  and  they  did  not  seem  to  be  enjoying 
themselves  very  much.  The  chairs  and  table  were  lashed 
to  the  deck,  and  the  officers  were  sitting  on  the  chairs, 
holding  on  as  hard  as  they  could  to  the  table.  Their  con 
versation  was  something  like  this :  One  man  would  say, 
" Wonder  how  long  this  thing  's  going  to  keep  up";  an 
other  would  say,  "A  man  's  a  fool  to  go  to  sea";  another 
would  say,  "Don't  think  we  '11  get  much  sleep  to-night. 


>  > 


A  GALE  OF  WIND  287 

Just  then  there  would  be  an  awful  thump  somewhere,  and 
we  would  hear  water  rushing  along  the  deck.  The  ship 
would  tremble,  and  we  would  all  keep  quiet.  Then  some 
body  would  say,  "That  was  a  good  one,"  another  would 
say, ' '  Must  have  taken  a  lot  of  water  on  board  that  time, ' ' 
and  so  on. 

We  gradually  dispersed,  each  one  staggering  along 
toward  his  room,  bumping  against  the  bulkheads.  The 
doctor  and  I  were  the  last  to  leave.  I  was  sitting  on  a 
chair  that  faced  to  starboard,  and  when  the  ship  would 
roll  to  port,  I  would  go  over  almost  on  my  back,  with  my 
feet  in  the  air ;  and  when  it  rolled  to  starboard,  I  would 
lean  forward  till  I  was  nearly  doubled  up  and  grip  the 
arms  of  the  chair.  Finally,  I  got  up  and  went  to  my  room 
as  steadily  as  I  could.  As  I  entered  my  doorway,  the 
ship  gave  a  violent  lurch,  and  I  ran  at  my  bunk  with 
outstretched  arms,  but  caught  myself  without  injury. 
Undressing  required  considerable  skill,  but  I  finally  suc 
ceeded  in  accomplishing  it,  and  then  I  turned  in,  and  put 
out  the  electric  light.  While  the  light  was  turned  on  I 
had  felt  quite  at  home ;  I  was  in  a  room,  and  I  saw  in  front 
of  me  a  desk,  a  mirror,  and  the  pictures  of  my  wife  and 
daughter;  but  when  the  light  was  out,  and  I  lay  down 
on  my  bunk  with  my  back  against  one  side  of  the  bunk 
and  my  knees  against  the  other  side,  and  heard  the  waves 
strike  every  few  seconds  against  my  air-port  and  then 
go  away  and  come  back  again,  and  I  thought  to  myself 
that  those  waves  were  only  a  foot  away  from  my  head,  I 
felt  that  I  was  a  tiny  atom,  out  on  the  ocean,  and  almost 
in  the  ocean,  in  a  howling  gale  of  wind;  and  I  was  very 
miserable  indeed. 

We  banged  about  in  our  bunks  that  night  and  got 
snatches  of  slumber  once  in  a  while.  All  the  next  day  the 
little  Petrel  tossed  and  squirmed  and  rolled.  Standing 
on  deck  and  looking  out  over  the  large  area  of  water 
and  seeing  the  size  of  the  waves,  the  Petrel  seemed  liter 
ally  to  be  tossed  by  them.  She  seemed  very  tiny  and  to 
be  struggling  against  unfair  odds ;  and  sometimes  when 


288     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

a  tremendous  wave  would  lift  her,  she  seemed  almost  to 
jump  out  of  the  water,  like  a  flying-fish. 

A  few  days  after,  we  rounded  the  promontory  of 
Shantung,  the  northeast  corner  of  China,  and  headed  to 
the  west,  along  the  Gulf  of  Pechili.  The  tides  in  this 
remarkable  sheet  of  water  are  absolutely  impossible  to 
predict,  and  I  am  told  that  even  the  pilots  of  the  place 
make  frequent  mistakes  about  them.  So  the  following 
evening  about  nine  o'clock  I  was  not  astonished  when 
we  suddenly  made  out  the  lightship  anchored  off  Taku, 
three  hours  before  we  expected  to  make  it  out.  The 
night  was  not  very  clear,  and  the  lightship  was  not  very 
far  away;  so  before  we  quite  realized  that  our  trip  was 
drawing  to  a  close  down  went  the  anchor,  and  the  engine 
ceased  to  throb. 

The  Boston  had  left  Manila  three  hours  before  we 
had,  to  go  to  Taku,  and  we  expected  to  find  her  at  anchor ; 
but  we  could  not  see  anything  except  a  few  lights  too 
close  inshore  to  be  hers  and  the  twin  lights  of  the  light 
ship.  We  afterward  found  that  the  Boston  had  had  a 
hard  time  in  the  monsoon,  and  had  gone  into  Amoy. 

After  plotting  the  ship's  position  on  the  chart,  I  went 
down  into  the  wardroom.  There  were  a  number  of  offi 
cers  sitting  there,  and  Hughes  turned  to  me,  with  a 
blissful  smile  on  his  face,  and  said:  " Bradley,  isn't 
this  delightful?"  There  we  were,  out  of  sight  of  land, 
with  no  town  nearer  than  twenty-five  miles  and  that  town 
not  a  very  attractive  one ;  there  was  no  chance  of  seeing 
any  newspapers  or  going  to  the  theater  or  seeing  any 
body  that  we  did  not  live  with  all  the  time  or  of  doing 
any  other  of  the  thousand  and  one  things  that  people  like 
to  do.  But  the  whirling  of  the  propeller  and  the  thump 
ing  of  the  engine  and  the  vibration  and  rolling  of  the  ship 
had  stopped,  and  the  strain  of  the  trip  was  over.  So 
when  Hughes  said,  "Isn't  this  delightful,"  we  leaned 
back  in  our  chairs  in  the  wardroom,  where  it  was  so  quiet, 
and  agreed  that  it  was  delightful. 

That  night  when  I  turned  into  my  bunk  I  reminded 


A  GALE  OF  WIND  289 

myself  that  I  did  not  have  to  fear  any  attack  of  torpedo- 
boats  or  anything  else,  and  that  I  was  not  in  danger  of 
being  called  because  the  search-lights  did  not  work  well, 
and  that  I  should  not  have  to  get  up  at  daylight  next 
morning  to  pilot  the  ship  all  day  in  dangerous  waters. 
So  I  stretched  out  tranquilly  and  slept. 

The  next  day,  while  I  was  standing  on  deck,  I  was 
knocked  down  by  a  spar  that  fell  on  my  head.  I  bled 
a  great  deal,  but  was  not  seriously  hurt.  I  remember  my 
principal  concern  was  lest  I  should  faint,  and  that  I  in 
sisted  vehemently  that  the  doctor  give  me  some  whisky 
to  prevent  it. 

The  next  afternoon  I  heard  a  sharp  pop  on  deck,  but 
it  was  not  very  loud,  and  I  did  not  pay  much  attention 
to  it.  A  few  minutes  later  I  saw  a  curious  shape  on 
deck,  with  a  Union  Jack  over  it,  and  I  found  it  was  a 
gunner's  mate,  just  killed  by  the  accidental  discharge 
of  a  revolver. 

A  few  days  later  we  got  under  way,  and  two  days 
afterward  we  anchored  at  Shanghai.  Our  boilers  had 
been  complaining  for  a  long  time,  and  we  knew  that 
they  had  to  be  repaired;  the  captain  had  reported  so, 
and  this  was  the  reason  of  our  coming. 

About  two  weeks  after  reaching  Shanghai  the  sur 
geon  and  I  took  dinner  on  board  an  English  war-ship. 
When  we  got  back  on  board  the  Petrel,  the  doctor  went 
down  to  his  room,  and  I  stayed  on  deck  and  talked  for  a 
while  with  Fermier.  Fermier  said  that  he  felt  very  badly, 
that  he  did  not  think  he  had  ever  felt  so  badly  before  in 
his  life.  I  said  that  I  would  go  down  and  call  the  doctor 
before  he  turned  in,  but  Fermier  objected,  and  said  he 
would  be  all  right  in  the  morning.  I  soon  came  to  feel, 
however,  that  Fermier  was  really  ill,  and  so  I  went  down 
and  told  the  doctor,  against  Fermier 's  protests. 

Supposing  that  Fermier  was  only  temporarily  ill,  I 
turned  in;  but  I  can  remember  now  that  before  I  got  to 
sleep  I  became  aware  of  a  slight  noise  in  front  of  my 
door,  and  opening  my  eyes,  I  saw  the  doctor  going  by 


290     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

with  his  left  arm  around  Fermier,  who  had  his  head  on 
the  doctor's  shoulder.  The  next  morning  Fermier  was 
unconscious.  The  doctor  pricked  him  with  a  pin,  but 
there  was  no  response.  The  captain  then  had  a  signal 
made  to  the  Monocacy  for  her  doctor,  who  came  to  the 
Petrel  at  once.  He  agreed  with  our  doctor  that  it  was  a 
case  of  apoplexy.  Fermier  died  that  evening  painlessly. 
Two  days  after,  his  body  was  cremated  in  Shanghai,  and 
all  the  officers  and  men  in  the  ship  who  could  went  to 
the  last  services  over  the  body  of  our  dear  messmate. 

We  had  been  together,  the  whole  mess,  for  nearly  two 
years,  and  there  had  not  been  any  break  up  to  this 
time.  We  had  been  through  many  dangers,  and  had  had 
together  many  of  the  strange  experiences  that  are  fre 
quent  in  the  lives  of  naval  men ;  so  this  sudden  death  of 
the  strongest  man  in  the  mess  was  a  great  grief  and 
shock.  The  grief  to  us  in  that  little  inclosure,  which  was 
our  temporary  home,  but  just  as  much  a  home  at  the 
time  as  any  home  is  home,  was  such  as  no  one  can  under 
stand  who  has  not  had  experiences  like  it. 

Mrs.  Fiske  and  Mrs.  Hall  joined  us  in  Shanghai,  and 
we  stayed  there  about  a  month.  During  this  time  the 
Taotai  gave  a  ball  in  his  palace.  All  I  can  remember  of 
it  is  a  dazzling  lot  of  uniforms  of  different  kinds,  a 
great  number  of  mandarins,  and  the  fact  that  the  Taotai 
changed  his  costume  five  times  during  the  evening. 

Not  long  after  this  the  Scots  of  Shanghai  gave  a 
Caledonian  ball  in  the  Astor  House.  My  wife  and  I  had 
never  been  to  a  Caledonian  ball  before,  and  we  were  much 
interested  in  the  extraordinary  dances  that  the  Scots 
performed.  The  way  the  Scots  danced,  men  and  women, 
showed  that  they  had  great  vigor  and  strength.  We  left 
about  half  past  two;  but  some  time  near  daylight  the 
following  morning  I  was  partly  wakened  from  my  slum 
bers  in  the  Astor  House  by  a  large  chorus  of  manly  voices, 
not  altogether  in  harmony,  singing,  "He  's  a  jolly  good 
fellow."  We  heard  afterward  that,  besides  the  regular 
supper  that  occurred  about  half  past  twelve,  the  real 


A  GALE  OF  WIND  291 

Scots  had  another  one  about  half  past  three;  and  that 
about  half  past  five  they  started  out  to  serenade  various 
prominent  people  of  Shanghai.  The  last  serenade  came 
off  at  about  eight  o  'clock  in  the  morning ;  but  by  this  time 
there  were  only  two  left  of  the  original  party  of  twenty 
to  sing  the  serenade,  if  singing  it  could  be  called;  the 
other  eighteen  had  literally  ' 'fallen  by  the  wayside," 
and  been  carried  home  by  coolies. 

Our  stay  at  Shanghai  was  extremely  pleasant,  and  the 
most  pleasant  part  of  it  all  was  to  see  the  way  we  were 
treated  by  everybody.  As  Americans  we  had  been  used 
to  being  treated  well  by  Americans,  Frenchmen,  Italians, 
and  people  from  South  America,  but  we  had  not  been 
used  to  being  treated  well  by  the  English  or  the  Ger 
mans,  at  least  not  as  equals.  Now  we  recognized  a  dis 
tinct  change  in  their  attitude  toward  us  and  we  knew 
why.  We  knew  that  many  people  had  expected  that  the 
Americans  would  be  whipped  by  the  Spaniards,  or  that, 
if  they  were  not  whipped  by  the  Spaniards,  the  powers 
would  see  that  they  were  not  allowed  really  to  whip  the 
Spaniards.  And  when  these  people  found  that  we  really 
had  whipped  the  Spaniards  and  had  gotten  possession  of 
Manila  and  Manila  Bay,  with  every  prospect  of  getting  all 
the  Philippine  Islands  and  some  of  the  West  Indies  and 
of  becoming  a  power  in  the  world,  their  manner  toward  us 
changed  and  Consul  Goodnow  smiled  now  when  he  told 
how  Prince  Henry  had  said  to  him  that  even  if  the  United 
States  should  get  Manila,  the  powers  would  not  allow 
the  United  States  to  keep  it. 

We  got  back  to  Manila  Bay  a  few  days  before  Christ 
mas,  and  had  that  strange  feeling  that  comes  to  every 
body  when  he  returns  to  a  place  that  has  been  very 
familiar  to  him  after  having  received  very  strong  im 
pression  in  his  absence  of  other  scenes:  I  mean  that 
strange  feeling  of  surprise  at  finding  things  so  un 
changed,  that  strange  feeling  that  he  has  not  been  away 
at  all. 

But  we  found  that  changes  were  to  happen  in  the  little 


292     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

lives  of  four  of  us,  and  they  happened  in  a  very  few 
days.  The  captain  was  detached  and  sent  home,  Hughes 
was  sent  to  the  monitor  Monterey  as  executive  officer, 
Hall  to  the  Concord  as  chief  engineer,  and  I  to  the  moni 
tor  Monadnock  as  navigator. 

We  had  now  been  in  the  ship  two  years,  and  the  only 
break  had  been  Fermier's  death.  So  it  was  with  a  tight 
feeling  in  the  throat  that  I  got  into  the  steam  launch 
with  my  uniforms  and  sword  on  the  afternoon  of  De 
cember  31,  and  shoved  off  from  the  little  Petrel. 


CHAPTER  XX 

OUTBREAK    OF    THE    FILIPINO    WAR 

IN  Ihe  afternoon  of  the  eleventh  of  January  the  Olym- 
p-jagave  a  little  dance.  I  went  up  to  Manila  and 
my  wife  and  daughter  down,  and  we  all  danced 
to  thewiisic  of  the  Olympia's  band,  under  awnings  deco 
rate^  with  flags;  arid!  we  could  look  through  the  openings 
the  flags  and  see  the  merchant  ships  and  war 
ship^  of  all  the  nations,  and  the  American  flag  over 
Manila. 

About  five  o'clock  the  admiral's  aide,  Scott,  came  to 
me  and  said  that  the  admiral  had  just  signaled  to  the 
Monadnock  to  go  in  and  anchor  off  Fort  San  Antonio  and 
clear  for  action,  but  that  she  was  not  to  go  until  after 
dark,  because  the  Filipino  insurgents  would  see  her  go. 

At  six  o'clock  the  ladies  started  back  to  Manila  in  a 
steamer,  and  we  of  the  Monadnock  got  into  our  boat  and 
went  to  the  Monadnock. 

We  were  very  quiet  at  dinner  that  evening  in  the 
Monadnock,  for  we  knew  that  we  might  be  on  the  verge 
of  war.  We  knew  that  at  the  first  shot  fired  between  the 
American  and  the  Filipino  lines  war  would  begin ;  and  we 
knew  that  if  war  did  begin,  it  would  be  that  most  heart 
rending  of  all  wars,  next  to  civil  war,  a  war  of  subjuga 
tion. 

About  nine  o'clock,  that  evening  we  picked  up  the 
Monadnock' s  anchor  very  quietly,  and  headed  in  toward 
Fort  San  Antonio.  The  night  was  very  dark,  and  it  was 
somewhat  difficult  to  see  where  we  were  going,  and  espe 
cially  to  avoid  the  fish-stakes  and  nets.  Lieutenant-Com 
mander  McCrackin  was  in  command;  he  stood  in  the 
bow,  and  gave  his  orders  in  regard  to  the  helm  and  en 
gines  to  me  on  the  bridge. 

293 


294     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

The  next  morning  we  found  that  the  alarm  of  the  day 
before  had  been  a  false  alarm,  at  least  for  the  present. 
But  the  Monadnock  was  got  into  position  near  Fort  San 
Antonio,  and  cleared  for  action. 

I  received  permission  to  go  ashore  that  afternoon,  and 
I  went  up  to  Manila.  About  four  o'clock  my  wife  and 
I  drove  down  in  a  carametta  to  Fort  San  Antonio  to 
look  at  the  arrangement  of  the  fort  and  the  American  and 
Filipino  trenches  near  it.  I  thought  it  would  be  inter 
esting  to  both  of  us,  and  that  even  a  slight  knowledge  of 
the  intrenchments  might  be  of  assistance  to  me  if  the 
Monadnock  should  have  to  open  fire. 

The  next  day  my  wife  and  daughter  left  in  the  King 
Sing  for  a  trip  through  India  and  Egypt,  and  I  went  back 
to  the  Monadnock.  The  King  Sing  went  out  just  before 
evening,  and  as  she  got  over  toward  the  west,  I  could 
see  her  form  outlined  with  intense  distinctness  against 
the  background  of  a  gorgeous  tropical  sunset. 

For  two  or  three  weeks  nothing  happened  to  break  the 
subdued  tension  of  the  situation.  People  went  to  and 
fro  in  Manila,  shopkeepers  plied  their  trade,  and  to  a 
casual  observer  everything  looked  peaceful  except  the 
sentries  pacing  at  frequent  intervals  in  the  streets,  regi 
ments  of  soldiers  drilling,  and  the  keen,  watchful  look 
on  the  face  of  everybody;  for  everybody  knew  that  all 
through  Manila  there  were  thousands  of  Filipinos  who 
hated  us  just  as  much  as  did  the  armed  Filipinos  who 
surrounded  the  city. 

On  the  afternoon  of  February  3,  I  went  up  to  Manila 
in  my  capacity  as  caterer  of  the  wine  mess,  and  went 
out  to  the  beer  brewery  to  get  some  beer.  After  doing 
this  I  went  to  the  Hotel  de  Oriente  to  see  how  some  of 
the  ladies  who  were  my  friends  were  feeling.  I  found 
that  they  were  in  a  state  of  repressed  excitement,  but 
seemingly  fearless.  I  was  about  to  leave  to  go  back  to 
the  Monadnock,  when  Mrs.  Hall  and  Mrs.  Peterson,  wives 
of  officers,  asked  me  to  take  dinner  with  them  at  the 
hotel.  I  was  very  glad  to  accept,  though  I  knew  I  should 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  FILIPINO  WAR       295 

get  a  wretched  dinner ;  but  our  opportunities  for  feminine 
companionship  were  few,  and  had  to  be  seized  when  they 
came.  One  of  the  ladies  had  a  pleasant  parlor  on  the 
corner  from  which  a  very  good  view  of  the  large  plaza 
in  front  of  the  hotel  could  be  got.  So  after  dinner  we 
three  sat  in  this  room  and  enjoyed  the  sight  of  the  moon 
light  resting  softly  on  the  large  buildings  and  the  foun 
tain  in  the  plaza,  and  the  sound  of  an  occasional  piano 
or  guitar.  One  of  the  ladies  said: 

"How  peaceful  everything  seems,  and  yet  how  peace 
ful  it  is  n't !"  and  she  pointed  down  the  street. 

There  in  the  dim  light  could  be  seen  in  the  distance  a 
dark,  regular  mass  of  men  that  swayed  slightly  from 
side  to  side  with  a  periodic  motion.  It  was  advancing 
toward  us.  At  intervals  in  the  mass  were  little  streaks 
of  light  that  seemed  as  if  reflected  from  bayonets  and 
swords.  Then  came  the  muffled  cadence  of  a  marching 
step,  and  a  faint,  metallic  clatter  of  accoutrements, 
keeping  time  with  the  step,  as  a  thousand  footfalls  struck 
the  ground  together.  Nearer  came  the  American  regi 
ment.  The  sight  and  the  sound  grew  clearer.  Then  the 
regiment  passed  beneath  our  window,  with  the  rhythmi 
cal,  echoing  foot-beat,  unrelieved  by  music,  and  the  set 
faces,  and  the  grim  suggestion  of  war  and  all  war  means. 
Then  the  sight  and  the  sound  died  slowly  away  and  the 
quiet  place  was  as  it  was  before. 

The  effect  on  the  ladies  was  at  first  reassuring,  but 
afterward  distinctly  disquieting.  I  asked  them  if  they 
felt  frightened,  and  they  said,  "No."  I  told  them  there 
was  nothing  to  be  frightened  at,  yet  I  did  not  feel  that 
I  was  telling  the  precise  truth.  One  of  them  said: 

"We  're  not  frightened  exactly,  but,  then,  it  isn't  al 
together  pleasant.  I  believe  myself  that  there  really  is 
danger,  but  I  don't  know;  everything  's  horribly  uncer 
tain.  W"e  all  know  that  thousands  of  Filipinos  here 
would  like  to  kill  us,  and  we  are  entirely  unprotected. 
We  can't  trust  even  the  doors  of  our  room  or  the 
bolts.  Any  Filipino  could  break  in  any  of  these 


296     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

doors.  All  the  servants  in  the  hotel  are  Filipinos,  and 
we  are  entirely  alone  among  all  of  them.  We  're  wait 
ing  every  minute  for  the  sound  of  a  rifle,  and  when  it 
comes  we  '11  know  what  it  means." 

The  other  lady  said: 

"Oh,  I  don't  think  there  's  any  danger  at  all.  The 
Filipinos  are  afraid  of  the  Americans  and  they  '11  never 
rise  against  them.  They  '11  talk  and  bluster,  but  they  '11 
never  really  try  to  fight  them." 

"Yes, "  said  the  first  speaker,  "perhaps  their  leaders 
wouldn't  want  them  to,  but  suppose  that  any  Filipino 
along  this  line  of  intrenchments  gets  into  a  fight  with  an 
American  soldier  and  fires  his  musket  at  him;  don't  you 
suppose  that  both  lines  will  be  in  battle  in  less  than  five 
minutes,  and  do  you  imagine  the  thousands  of  Filipinos 
in  Manila  are  going  to  do  nothing  when  that  happens? 
Now,  I  don't  like  to  say  that  I  'm  afraid,  but  sometimes 
I  wake  in  the  night  and  think  I  hear  a  noise  in  the  hotel 
and  a  rifle-shot.  I  tell  you  it  's  awful." 

I  had  a  feeling,  not  unpleasant,  that  these  ladies  liked 
to  have  me  there;  that  my  uniform  gave  them  a  feeling 
of  protection,  though  I  knew  that  I  was  just  as  helpless 
as  they,  for  I  had  not  even  a  penknife  as  a  weapon.  I 
said  that  I  thought  there  was  no  real  danger,  at  least 
for  the  present,  but  that  I  felt  sure  that  there  would 
be  danger  in  time,  and  that  I  thought  they  ought  to  leave 
Manila  as  soon  as  they  could.  Then  we  went  down  to 
the  plaza  to  shake  off  the  nervous  feeling  that  had  taken 
possession  of  us,  and  enjoyed  the  beauty  and  quiet  of  the 
scene.  WThen  I  walked  back  with  them  to  the  door 
of  the  hotel  and  bade  them  good  night,  and  the  door  of 
the  hotel  closed  after  them,  I  felt  that  they  were  going 
into  danger. 

I  got  a  carriage  and  drove  through  the  moonlit  streets. 
I  told  the  driver  to  go  slowly,  for  it  was  an  intense  pleas 
ure  to  watch  the  moonlight  and  the  shadows  on  the  streets 
and  on  the  buildings  and  the  churches,  and  to  imagine 
to  myself  the  dark  plots  going  on  beneath  those  roofs 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  FILIPINO  WAR       297 

that  now  looked  so  very  white  and  peaceful,  and  then 
imagine  what  would  happen  if  one  rifle-shot  rang  out. 

I  soon  got  abreast  of  where  the  Monadnock  lay,  to  a 
place  where  there  were  Filipino  boats.  But  I  could  not 
find  any  Filipino  boatmen.  This  gave  me  an  unpleasant 
feeling ;  but  I  walked  about,  and  soon  found  a  sentry.  I 
told  him  my  plight,  and  he  called  for  the  corporal  of  the 
guard.  The  corporal  said: 

"All  right,  sir;  I  '11  find  you  a  couple  of  men."  He 
went  away  in  the  darkness,  and  soon  came  back  with  two 
Filipinos,  and  they  took  me  down  to  a  canoe.  On  the 
beach  the  corporal  said  to  me  quietly: 

"Are  you  armed,  sir?" 

"No,  I  haven't  a  thing." 

"Well,  I  wouldn't  trust  these  fellows,  sir;  perhaps 
you  'd  better  pretend  that  you  are  armed." 

The  Filipinos  motioned  me  to  get  into  the  bow  of  the 
canoe,  but  I  said,  "No,  I  '11  sit  in  the  stern,"  for  I  had 
no  desire  to  have  one  of  them  hit  me  over  the  head  from 
behind  with  his  paddle.  So  I  sat  down  in  the  stern  and 
made  them  sit  forward  with  their  backs  to  me,  and  I  let 
them  see  that  I  had  my  hand  behind  my  right  hip,  as  if 
I  had  a  revolver. 

The  Monadnock  lay  about  three  quarters  of  a  mile 
from  the  beach,  and  I  could  see  her  low,  black  hull  and 
her  turrets  and  her  military  mast  grimly  outlined  against 
the  sky.  She  seemed  powerful  and  awful  in  the  night, 
and  when  I  got  on  board  I  took  pleasure  in  fancying  that 
I  was  entering  into  the  welcome  protection  of  some  be 
nignant  monster. 

The  next  day  was  very  dull  during  daylight,  but  about 
eight  o'clock  in  the  evening,  while  several  of  us  were 
standing  on  the  bridge  trying  to  get  what  little  air  there 
was,  watching  the  lights  and  the  vaguely  outlined  build 
ings  of  the  quiet  city,  suddenly  and  clearly  came  the  crack 
of  that  rifle-shot. 

The  first  sound  came  from  the  north,  but  almost  in 
stantly  it  encircled  the  entire  city.  We  looked  at  one 


298     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

another,  and  some  one  said,  ''That  's  it."  Then  we 
listened  to  the  rattle  of  the  rifles,  and  the  rattle  kept  in 
creasing.  Sometimes  we  could  see  flashes  not  very  far 
away. 

We  sounded  the  electric  alarm,  and  went  to  general 
quarters,  and  turned  on  our  search-lights.  We  got  up 
ammunition,  loaded  the  guns,  and  went  to  our  stations 
for  battle.  We  swept  the  beach  with  our  search-lights 
near  Fort  San  Antonio.  But  we  could  see  no  signs  of 
attack  there  from  either  side,  and  no  boats;  nothing  but 
the  smooth  water  and  the  fish-stakes  and  the  sharp  angles 
of  the  fort. 

We  waited  in  keen  and  almost  silent  watchfulness 
for  an  hour,  but  nothing  happened.  The  sound  of  fir 
ing  finally  lessened,  and  then  McCrackin  decided  that 
there  was  nothing  more  that  we  could  do  just  then.  So 
most  of  the  men  were  allowed  to  turn  in,  though  a  large 
armed  force  was  kept  on  deck.  The  engines  were  kept 
ready  to  move  at  a  moment's  notice,  and  all  preparations 
were  continued  for  battle. 

The  next  day,  Sunday,  the  fifth  of  February,  the  fight 
began  in  earnest  all  around  Manila.  The  American 
army  at  once  showed  the  difference  that  existed  between 
the  American  idea  of  fighting  and  the  Spanish  idea  of 
fighting.  I  mean  that  the  American  army  at  once  pre 
pared  to  advance  and  in  all  directions.  All  the  troops 
stationed  in  the  southern  part  of  Manila,  where  the 
Monadnock  lay,  occupied  at  once  the  line  of  intrench- 
ments  that  ran  from  Fort  San  Antonio  east  to  Block 
house  No.  14,  facing  the  Filipino  intrenchments  on  the 
other  side  of  the  little  river. 

The  duty  of  the  Monadnock  was  to  support  Fort  San 
Antonio  and  to  shell  the  ground  south  of  her,  over  which 
the  American  troops  were  to  advance.  We  were  within 
musket-range  of  the  insurgents,  and  we  could  plainly  see 
the  white  hats  that  they  foolishly  wore.  In  the  forenoon 
and  the  early  part  of  the  afternoon  they  fired  a  good 
deal  at  the  Monadnock,  but  only  two  of  our  men  were 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  FILIPINO  WAR       299 

hit.  One  of  them  got  a  very  curious  wound.  He  was 
standing  at  the  forward  hatch,  facing  aft,  with  his  head 
turned  down  on  the  left  side.  A  Mauser  bullet,  coming 
down,  entered  his  right  cheek,  passed  through  his  jaw  on 
the  right  side,  went  under  his  tongue,  under  his  jaw  on 
the  left  side,  through  his  neck,  entered  his  left  shoulder 
behind  his  collar-bone,  and  finally  lodged  in  the  muscles 
behind  his  shoulder,  whence  Surgeon  Steele  extracted  it. 

We  found  some  difficulty  in  the  Monadnock  in  reading 
the  army's  signals  and  making  sure  we  were  firing  right; 
and  we  feared,  of  course,  firing  into  our  own  soldiers. 
So  I  asked  the  captain  to  let  me  go  ashore  and  see  the 
officer  in  command  on  the  fort,  and  arrange  a  system  of 
signals  by  which  we  would  know  how  to  fire.  He  gave 
me  permission,  and  so  I  got  into  a  steam  launch,  and 
had  it  tow  a  dinghy  toward  the  beach.  I  did  not  steer  di 
rectly  toward  the  fort,  because  I  knew  that  the  right  of 
the  Filipino  line  went  northeast,  parallel  to  the  American 
line  beyond  Blockhouse  No.  14,  and  that  they  were  firing 
toward  the  west;  so  that  if  I  went  directly  toward  the 
fort,  I  should  be  in  the  line  of  fire  and  in  unnecessary 
danger  of  being  hit.  So  I  headed  somewhat  north  of 
the  fort  until  the  water  began  to  shoal;  then  I  got  into 
the  dinghy,  and  pulled  in  to  the  beach  until  the  keel 
touched  bottom.  Then  I  had  two  sailors  carry  me  to  the 
beach,  for  I  had  a  new  pair  of  white  shoes  on. 

The  beach  was  flat  for  about  twenty  feet  back  from 
the  water,  where  it  met  a  line  of  little  sand  hills  about 
three  feet  high.  I  told  my  two  men  to  lie  down  and 
wait  for  me,  and  then  ran  down  the  beach  toward  the 
fort.  Pretty  soon  I  heard  bullets  singing  over  my  head, 
and  then  I  crouched  down  and  ran  along,  doubled  up,  be 
hind  the  sand  hills.  I  soon  reached  the  northern  wall  of 
the  fort.  I  ran  along  it,  and  in  a  few  moments  more 
ran  into  the  gate. 

I  found  the  fort  full  of  soldiers,  with  their  muskets 
in  their  hands  and  their  belts  on,  but  sitting  or  lying 
down.  I  found  the  commanding  officer  near  a  telegraph 


300     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

instrument.  He  had  just  received  a  report  from  some 
where.  I  do  not  remember  exactly  what  the  report  was, 
but  I  remember  that  part  of  it  was  that  "the  barefoots 
were  running  in  all  directions. ' '  This  news  was  given  to 
the  men  in  the  fort,  and  they  received  it  very  quietly. 

After  arranging  a  -simple  system  of  signals  with  the 
commanding  officer  about  how  the  Monadnock  was  to  fire 
I  went  up  on  the  parapet.  It  was  rather  exciting  there, 
because  bullets  from  Filipino  sharp-shooters  using 
smokeless  powder  were  coming  over  fast,  and  one  could 
only  hear  the  singing  of  the  bullets,  without  seeing  any 
smoke;  so  I  stuck  my  head  cautiously  over  the  top  of 
the  parapet,  and  there,  looking  to  the  east,  I  could  see 
our  line  of  intrenchments  running  eastward  to  Blockhouse 
No.  14.  Our  men  were  lying  down  behind  them,  but 
some  of  the  officers  were  on  horseback.  They  were  just 
preparing  to  make  an  advance,  and  so  I  stayed  there 
awhile,  watching  them.  In  a  few  moments  I  heard  a 
dull,  shuffling  noise  in  the  fort  and  looking  behind  me,  I 
saw  the  men  in  the  fort  slowly  and  gravely  falling  in. 
I  was  surprised  to  see  the  quietness  with  which  they  did 
it.  There  was  no  apparent  enthusiasm  and  no  bravado, 
but  instead  a  determined  calmness.  They  were  all  volun 
teers.  Nine  tenths  of  them  had  never  heard  a  bullet 
whistle  before  to-day.  They  were  ordered  to  advance 
toward  an  enemy,  of  whom  they  knew  nothing  except  that 
they  were  br.ave  -and  cruel.  They  did  not  know  how 
many  there  were,  but  they  knew  that  there  might  be  a 
very  great  many.  I  saw  these  men  march  out  of  the 
fort,  and  fall  in  line  outside  the  fort  in  line  with  the 
intrenchments.  They  wa-lked  out  steadily,  with  fixed 
faces,  some  very  pale. 

I  saw  it  was  time  for  me  to  get  back  to  my  ship,  so 
I  ran  to  my  boat,  and  I  was  quickly  towed  to  the  Monad- 
nock.  I  had  scarcely  reached  her  when  the  army  sig 
naled  that  they  were  ready  to  advance.  Then  the  Monad- 
nock  steamed  slowly  toward  the  south,  firing  her  ten- 
inch  and  her  four-inch  guns  and  her  various  rapid-fire 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  FILIPINO  WAR       301 

guns,  ahead  of  the  American  advancing  line,  whose  right 
rested  on  the  beach,  and  was  marked  by  a  red  flag.  By 
watching  this  red  flag  we  were  able  to  tell  how  far  the  line 
had  advanced. 

The  land  into  which  the  army  marched  was  thickly 
wooded  and  had  been  full  of  insurgents.  Before  we  be 
gan  to  fire  we  could  see  a  long  line  of  straw  hats  over 
the  Filipino  intrenchments  facing  the  north,  but  they 
quickly  disappeared  after  the  Monadnock  began  to  fire. 
The  light  bullets  of  our  soldiers  were  very  ineffective 
against  the  deep,  thick  underbrush  and  the  trees ;  but  the 
five-hundred-pound  shell  of  the  Monadnock  crashed 
through  them,  and  we  heard  afterward  that  most  of  the 
damage  done  was  done  by  her  guns,  and  that  her  ten- 
inch  shells  did  more  good  in  driving  the  enemy  back  than 
anything  else.  Her  fire  was  so  effective,  in  fact,  that  our 
soldiers  found  much  less  resistance  than  they  expected, 
and  that  night  got  as  far  as  Pasai.  But  there  was  great 
loss  of  life  on  both  sides.  In  one  spot  near  Blockhouse 
No.  14  there  were  found  twelve  American  soldiers  killed 
and  forty-one  wounded.  The  Monadnock  and  the 
Charleston  took  up  positions  abreast  of  Pasai  as  supports, 
and  all  that  night  there  was  much  signaling  from  the 
shore  to  us  and  from  us  to  the  flag-ship. 

The  fire  of  the  Monadnock 's  guns  that  day  was  ex 
tremely  accurate,  and  this  was  due  principally  to  the 
telescope  sights  with  which  the  guns  were  fitted.  This 
was  my  first  opportunity  to  observe  their  usefulness  in 
war,  and  I  felt  a  pride,  which  I  think  may  be  pardoned, 
in  seeing  my  invention  work  so  well — my  despised  in 
vention,  long  condemned  by  the  navy  and  by  naval  offi 
cers,  for  whose  sake  I  had  endured  those  years  of  mis 
understanding  that,  I  hope,  none  but  inventors  ever 
know. 

Trouble  developed  later  in  understanding  the  signals 
from  the  army  telling  us  how  to  fire.  They  had  now  ad 
vanced  to  the  town  of  Caloocan,  but  the  distance  from 
the  Monadnock  was  so  great  that  the  flags  could  not  be 


302     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

seen  clearly,  and  altogether  the  signaling  was  not  at  all 
satisfactory.  Captain  Russell  of  the  Signal  Corps,  re 
cently  from  West  Point,  came  on  board  and  asked  me  if 
I  could  not  arrange  some  plan  for  signaling  between  the 
Monadnock  and  Caloocan  by  wireless  telegraphy.  He 
said  that  he  had  plenty  of  wire  and  batteries,  and  that  he 
thought  probably  the  Monadnock  had  some  mechanics 
who  could  make  the  apparatus,  which  would  be  rather 
simple.  He  said  that  if  I  would  furnish  the  knowledge 
and  the  mechanics,  he  would  furnish  the  material  and 
the  men  to  use  the  apparatus.  We  talked  over  the  mat 
ter  for  a  long  while,  but  finally  concluded  that  neither 
of  us  had  the  time  to  make  the  necessary  experiments. 
I  finally  suggested  to  him  that  I  should  give  him  a  chart 
which  was  like  the  one  the  ship  used,  and  that  both  on 
this  chart  and  the  ship 's  chart  I  would  mark  the  position 
of  the  ship  and  of  the  church  at  Caloocan,  so  that  if  the 
army  at  any  time  wished  a  shell  landed  at  any  point, 
night  or  day,  all  he,  the  signal  captain,  would  have  to  do, 
would  be  to  measure  the  distance  and  direction  of  that 
point  from  Caloocan,  and  signal  it  from  Caloocan  to  the 
Monadnock.  I  would  then  mark  that  point  on  our  chart, 
and  measure  its  distance  and  direction  from  the  Monad 
nock;  and  then  we  would  simply  fire  at  that  point,  as  it 
was  not  necessary  to  see  it.  I  told  Russell  that  I  could  ar 
range  by  means  of  spirit  levels  that  this  could  be  done  by 
night  as  well  as  by  day,  because  the  Monadnock  hardly 
moved  in  the  still  water.  We  submitted  this  plan  to  the 
captain  of  the  Monadnock;  he  approved  it,  and  we  used  it 
successfully  on  several  occasions  afterward. 

A  few  days  after  that,  while  we  were  lying  at  about 
the  same  place,  off  Malabon,  the  quartermaster  reported 
Admiral  Dewey's  barge  coming  that  way.  The  admiral 
came  alongside,  and  all  the  officers  who  were  on  the 
quarter-deck  at  the  time,  and  there  happened  to  be  sev 
eral,  stood  at  attention  and  saluted  as  he  came  on  board. 
He  had  just  received  his  promotion  to  the  grade  of 
admiral,  and  we  stared  with  wide-open  eyes  at  the  four 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  FILIPINO  WAR       303 

stars  and  the  anchor,  which  only  two  men  in  American 
history  had  ever  worn  before.  He  stepped  on  to  the 
deck,  and  as  we  saluted,  he  returned  our  salutes  with  a 
mixture  of  perfect  official  precision  and  good-natured 
ease.  He  greeted  each  of  us  in  turn,  calling  each  by 
name,  and  then  remarked  that  he  would  like  to  see  the 
firing  of  the  Monadnock  from  her  bridge.  At  this  time 
we  were  firing  by  the  method  I  have  just  spoken  of.  He 
remained  on  the  bridge  two  or  three  hours,  watching  the 
firing  and  the  signaling,  and  was  kind  enough  to  say  that 
he  was  pleased  with  the  results. 

But  he  did  not  like  the  way  the  turret  moved  under  its 
hydraulic  power.  He  turned  to  me  and  said : 

1  'Look  how  that  turret  jumps,  Fiske;  we  can  turn  tur 
rets  much  better  by  electricity,  can't  we?"  with  a  smile, 
knowing  that  I  had  been  employed  for  a  long  time  in 
trying  to  turn  turrets  by  electricity,  and  that  a  success 
ful  trial  had  recently  been  made  in  the  Brooklyn. 

Admiral  Dewey  left  the  ship  soon  afterward.  When 
about  to  go  over  the  side  he  faced  around,  and,  with  his 
hand  at  the  visor  of  his  cap  in  military  salute,  smilingly 
bade  us  good  afternoon,  looking  each  officer  in  the  eyes, 
and  making  a  courteous  inclination  of  the  head  to  each 
as  he  did  so. 

A  day  or  two  later  a  lady  told  me  that  she  had  heard 
there  were  some  Igorrotes  confined  as  prisoners  at  the 
arsenal,  and  that  she  wished  she  could  go  and  see  them 
as  well  as  the  other  things  in  the  arsenal.  So  the  next 
morning  I  took  her  to  the  arsenal  and  showed  her  the 
old  Spanish  guns  and  other  curious  things.  Then  we 
walked  out  of  the  main  gate  to  the  parade-ground,  which 
we  found  full  of  our  troops,  drilling.  Fort  San  Felipe, 
where  the  prisoners  of  war  were  confined,  was  on  our 
right;  and  we  went  in  one  of  its  gates,  cut  through  a 
high  and  thick  stone  wall.  We  found  ourselves  in  a  very 
large  yard,  in  which  were  a  few  of  our  soldiers  stationed 
as  sentries  and  several  hundred  Filipino  prisoners. 
Some  of  them  were  dressed  in  the  simple  uniform  of  the 


304     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAB-ADMIRAL 

Filipino  army,  a  straw  hat,  a  shirt,  and  a  pair  of  trousers 
of  a  thin  material,  with  white  and  blue  stripes.  But  many 
of  them  were  not  dressed  in  uniform,  and  had  on  merely 
a  shirt  and  a  pair  of  trousers,  the  shirt  worn  outside  of 
the  trousers,  as  is  the  Filipino  style.  There  were  many 
women  there,  who  had  been  allowed  to  come  and  see  their 
friends,  and  most  of  them  wore  bright  skirts  and  waists, 
but  were  barefooted,  like  the  men. 

We  asked  to  see  the  Igorrotes.  We  had  heard  of  them 
as  being  very  fierce  warriors,  who  wore  large  head-gear 
and  feathers,  and  who  fought  ferociously  with  spears 
and  clubs  and  bows  and  arrows.  The  sentry  pointed  to 
a  group  of  little  men,  almost  naked,  and  said,  "  Those 
are  the  Igorrotes."  They  looked  stupid,  and  had  no 
head-gear  except  their  own  short,  black  hair,  and  were 
very  commonplace  and  disappointing  in  appearance. 
They  belonged  to  a  tribe  that  the  Tagals,  the  dominant 
tribe  of  the  Philippines,  had  forced  to  fight  with  them 
against  the  Americans. 

The  Filipinos  in  the  yard  seemed  to  be  in  very  good 
spirits  and  very  good  condition,  and  to  be  much  inter 
ested  in  the  cooking  going  on  in  several  parts  of  their 
prison;  and  it  occurred  to  us  that  perhaps  they  were 
extremely  glad  to  be  in  a  safe  place,  and  to  have  plenty 
to  eat  and  no  work,  instead  of  marching  from  place  to 
place  in  the  heat  and  the  mud,  always  in  danger,  with  a 
great  deal  of  drilling  to  do  and  very  little  to  eat. 

After  satisfying  our  curiosity  about  the  Filipino 
prisoners  and  the  Igorrotes,  my  companion  and  I  walked 
to  the  quarters  formerly  occupied  by  the  Spanish  com 
mandant  of  the  fort  and  his  family.  We  found  it  a  very 
comfortable  house,  situated  on  a  high  hill,  and  a  very 
good  view  could  be  got  from  its  piazza  of  Manila  Bay 
and  city.  The  house  was  in  a  good  deal  of  disorder,  and 
on  the  ground  floor  I  picked  up  three  things.  I  gave  two 
of  them  to  my  companion,  and  I  kept  the  other.  One  was 
a  Spanish  prayer-book,  another  was  a  pair  of  ladies' 
stockings  that  seemed  to  be  new,  and  the  other  was  a  very 
pretty  lace  handkerchief. 


OUTBREAK  OF  THE  FILIPINO  WAR       305 

Looking  over  on  one  side  from,  the  second  story,  we  saw 
a  dark  passageway.  We  went  along  it,  and  finally  came 
to  a  flight  of  stone  steps.  We  went  down  these,  and 
after  perhaps  fifteen  or  twenty  steps  came  to  an  opening 
in  the  stone  wall  about  the  size  of  an  ordinary  window, 
and  looking  through  this  we  saw  that  it  opened  into  a 
kind  of  little  chapel.  The  dark  stairway  descended  still 
farther,  winding  a  little,  and  we  went  down  it.  It  brought 
us  to  a  plot  of  ground  perhaps  about  thirty  feet  square, 
inclosed  by  very  high  walls;  and  in  it,  near  one  of  the 
walls,  was  a  well  that  looked  very  nasty.  What  this  well 
was  intended  for  I  have  never  heard.  The  ground  was 
covered  with  damp,  coarse  grass  and  the  place  was  far 
from  being  attractive;  so  we  retraced  our  steps,  going 
back  up  the  winding,  dark  stone  steps,  inclosed  by  solid, 
damp  walls. 

We  felt  relieved  when  we  got  up  into  the  fresh  air 
again,  but  in  a  few  minutes  we  started  on  another  tour 
of  inspection,  and  we  soon  came  to  a  curious  stone  struc 
ture  that  seemed  to  have  no  entrance  except  through  a 
hole  about  two  feet  square  at  the  top.  I  looked  down  this, 
but  could  see  nothing  except  the  space  inclosed  by  the 
wall,  the  top,  and  the  bottom,  which  was  perhaps  twenty 
feet  square.  The  locality  was  damp  and  half  dark,  and 
suggested  dungeons  and  other  unpleasant  things,  so  we 
walked  out  into  the  fresh  air  and  out  on  the  parade- 
ground.  My  companion  was  tired  now  and  a  little  un 
nerved,  and  seeing  a  beautiful  church  on  the  opposite 
side,  she  suggested  that  we  go  in  and  sit  down.  The  idea 
of  resting  in  the  yellow  light  of  ecclesiastical  windows 
seemed  pleasant,  after  our  contact  with  a  dungeon;  and 
so  we  turned,  as  many  people  in  all  ages  have  turned, 
to  the  church.  But  just  as  we  were  about  to  enter  we 
heard  running  footsteps  behind  us.  In  a  moment  a  young 
officer,  almost  out  of  breath,  overtook  us  and  called  out: 

*  *  For  God 's  sake !  don 't  go  in  there !  That  's  the  small 
pox  hospital!" 


CHAPTER  XXI 

ADVENTURES  IN    A    MONITOR 

THE  next  morning  we  got  under  way  for  Hong-Kong, 
looking  forward  with  delight  to  a  change  of  air  and 
scenery.  We  steamed  down  near  the  flag-ship,  and  some 
of  us  got  into  a  boat  and  went  on  board  for  physical  ex 
amination  for  promotion.  The  surgeons  got  through  this 
pretty  soon,  and  about  five  o'clock  the  Monadnock 
steamed  toward  the  opening  of  Manila  Bay. 

Although  we  were  very  glad  to  go  to  Hong-Kong,  where 
we  should  find  pleasant  things  and  civilized  life,  we  looked 
forward  to  the  trip  with  no  pleasure.  We  knew  that  the 
northeast  monsoon,  which  had  made  it  unpleasant  for 
the  Petrel,  was  still  blowing,  and  that  beyond  the  grace 
ful  curves  of  Corregidor  Island  and  the  smooth  water 
that  surrounded  it  the  ocean  was  extremely  rough.  Most 
of  us  had  never  been  at  sea  in  a  monitor,  and  we  did  not 
trust  monitors  very  much.  The  admiral  had  told  Cap 
tain  Nichols  that  he  would  send  another  ship  to  convoy 
the  Monadnock;  but  the  captain  was  far  from  being  a 
timid  man,  and  he  had  asked  the  admiral  not  to  do  that, 
but  to  let  the  Monadnock  go  alone. 

I  cannot  say  that  any  of  us  were  really  anxious  about 
the  result  of  the  trip,  but  I  think  we  all  felt  that  we 
should  be  glad  when  it  was  over. 

We  steamed  out  of  the  bay  about  eight  o'clock,  and  I 
went  up  on  the  bridge  and  stayed  there  for  a  while,  and 
watched  the  small  waves  dash  against  the  side  of  the 
Monadnock,  and  then  roll  gently  across  the  deck  in  the 
moonlight.  It  was  a  very  pretty  sight,  and  I  stayed  there 
a  long  while,  watching  the  breaking  up  of  the  water  by 
the  massive  monitor,  that  some  people  said  was  like  a 
raft  and  other  people  said  was  like  a  flat-iron. 

306 


ADVENTUKES  IN  A  MONITOK  307 

The  next  day  the  water  began  to  get  rough  gradually, 
and  we  knew  that  we  were  getting  toward  the  place  where 
the  large  waves  were.  During  the  next  night  the  Monad- 
nock  began  to  roll  with  the  quick,  regular,  pendulum-like 
motion  of  the  monitor,  and  we  knew  that  the  next  day 
we  should  be  in  a  heavy  sea. 

The  next  morning  it  was  raining  heavily,  and  I  awoke 
to  hear  the  sound  of  water  falling  on  the  superstructure 
over  my  head.  I  could  hear  it  rush  down  to  the  port  side 
when  the  ship  rolled  to  port,  and  then  rush  down  to  the 
starboard  side  when  the  ship  rolled  to  starboard.  I 
looked  out  of  my  port-hole  and  saw,  higher  than  my  head, 
the  white  tops  of  waves. 

I  knew  that  there  was  no  chance  of  my  getting  an  ob 
servation  of  the  sun,  because  the  sky  was  covered  with 
clouds,  and  so  I  did  not  hurry  to  get  on  deck ;  but  finally 
I  went  up  there.  Werlich  was  officer  of  the  deck,  and  he 
looked  so  big  and  handsome  in  his  yellow  oilskin  suit 
that  it  was  a  pleasure  to  be  near  him.  We  stood  on  the 
weather  side  of  the  bridge  and  watched  the  waves.  The 
wind  and  the  waves  were  coming  from  the  starboard  side 
and  a  little  from  forward.  The  bridge  was  perhaps 
twenty  feet  above  the  hull  of  the  monitor  and  ten  feet 
above  the  superstructure,  and  it  was  supported  by  a  num 
ber  of  iron  braces.  I  remember  I  said  to  myself  as  I 
climbed  the  ladder  leading  to  the  bridge  that  it  looked  like 
a  very  flimsy  bridge,  with  those  enormous  waves  behind 
it  as  a  background. 

When  the  Petrel  was  out  in  this  same  kind  of  sea,  she 
had  acted  like  a  little  horse  in  a  canter ;  and  whenever  an 
enormous  wave  seemed  about  to  engulf  her,  she  would 
rise  as  if  jumping  over  it.  But  the  Monadnock  acted 
more  like  a  plow  than  like  a  horse.  She  seemed  to  poke 
her  steel  nose  down  into  the  water,  and  she  would  not 
rise  at  all.  The  Petrel's  bow  was  high  and  buoyant,  so 
that  the  effect  of  a  wave  rising  under  her  bow  was  to  lift 
it;  but  the  Monadnock's  bow  was  only  about  two  feet 
above  smooth  water,  so  that  when  a  large  wave  came,  it 


308     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

simply  fell  on  the  bow,  and  pressed  it  down,  instead  of 
lifting  it  up.  The  sight  of  this  to  persons  not  used  to  it 
was  awful  in  the  real  sense  of  the  word — the  sight  of  this 
big  steel  monster  forced  along  by  powerful  engines 
through  waves  that  tried  to  sink  it. 

It  is  the  idea  of  many  people  that  the  waves  of  the 
ocean  are  simply  water  that  is  undulating,  and  that  has 
no  forward  motion  as  a  mass ;  whereas  it  has  real  forward 
motion  as  well  as  up  and  down  motion.  Let  any  one  blow 
on  the  surface  of  water  in  a  basin,  and  he  will  see  that 
not  only  does  the  water  form  in  little  waves,  but  the 
water  on  top  is  shoved  along  by  the  force  of  his  breath. 
Water  has  weight  and  mass  as  well  as  any  other  matter 
has,  and,  when  moving,  it  has  momentum  and  energy; 
so  that  when  it  strikes  anything,  it  exerts  force  against 
it.  Now,  in  the  case  of  waves  coming  toward  a  ship,  and 
the  ship  advancing  toward  them,  not  only  do  the  ship  and 
the  waves  collide,  but,  when  the  bottom  of  a  wave  strikes 
a  low  ship  like  the  Monadnock,  the  bottom  of  the  wave  is 
forced  to  stop,  while  the  top  of  the  wave  keeps  on  moving 
just  as  before;  and  it  rushes  along  the  deck  with  great 
speed  and  power. 

When  the  steel  turret  of  the  Monadnock  received  the 
impact  of  heavy  waves  at  times  that  morning,  it  did  not 
seem  to  us  that  the  turret  could  stand  it.  But  the 
spectacular  effect  was  fine.  I  do  not  exaggerate  when 
I  say  that  sometimes  the  waves  on  the  forecastle  were 
ten  feet  high.  Right  under  our  eyes  we  could  see  the 
circular  top  of  the  turret,  but  the  rest  of  the  turret 
was  shrouded  by  thick,  white  waves  of  water  in  violent 
ebullition. 

We  were  looking  down  at  this  spectacle  and  comment 
ing  to  each  other  on  its  beauty  when  Werlich  suddenly 
cried,  * '  Look  out ! "  I  looked,  and  saw  an  enormous  wave 
strike  the  superstructure  below  the  bridge,  and  then  it 
seemed  to  me  to  rise  into  the  air.  Werlich  and  I  turned 
our  backs  quickly,  and  caught  hold  of  the  heavy  brass 
railing  that  ran  along  the  after  end  of  the  bridge.  Just 


ADVENTURES  IN  A  MONITOR  309 

then  the  Monadnock  gave  a  roll  down  to  port,  and  at  the 
same  instant  we  received  a  violent  blow  on  the  back. 

I  felt  the  railing  yield,  and  I  wondered  helplessly 
whether  I  should  be  thrown  down  on  the  hard  steel  deck 
or  down  into  the  sea ;  but  it  was  all  over  in  a  few  seconds, 
and  we  straightened  ourselves  up.  We  saw  that  the  rail 
ing  of  the  bridge  against  which  we  had  been  pushed  had 
been  bent.  Werlich  laughed  outright  and  cried : 

4 'Is  n't  this  splendid?" 

"No,  I  don't  think  it  is,"  I  replied. 

All  that  day  we  rolled  monotonously  from  side  to  side. 
In  an  ordinary  ship,  in  a  gale,  the  motion  is  uneven :  the 
ship  will  pitch,  then  roll,  and  then  do  both  at  once ;  then 
there  will  be  a  jar,  and  the  ship  will  shake ;  then  she  will 
make  a  few  heavy  rolls ;  then  there  will  be  a  lull ;  then  she 
will  do  the  same  things  all  over  again.  The  motion  is 
fantastic,  and  one  finds  himself  guessing  all  the  time  what 
is  going  to  happen.  But  in  the  monitor  we  rolled  down 
to  starboard,  down  to  port;  down  to  starboard,  down  to 
port,  with  the  regularity  of  the  pendulum  of  a  clock,  and 
it  was  exasperating  beyond  words. 

That  night,  perhaps  about  nine  o'clock,  I  went  up  on 
the  bridge  to  see  how  the  forecastle  looked  at  night  under 
the  waves.  I  watched  the  white,  restless  mass,  now  shal 
low,  now  deep,  rush  along  the  deck  right  at  the  turret, 
as  if  it  would  sweep  the  turret  off  the  deck.  I  saw  it 
break  against  the  calm  mass  of  steel,  then  rise  high  into 
the  air.  Right  under  me  on  the  port  end  of  the  bridge 
this  water  would  roll  off  into  the  sea.  I  kept  looking 
at  this  until  my  nerves  got  into  a  tingle.  Suddenly  a 
voice  whispered  into  my  ear: 

"Did  you  ever  feel  like  committing  murder?" 

I  looked  to  the  right,  and  saw  a  man  standing  close  by 
me,  with  his  bright  eyes  on  mine.  My  whole  body  felt 
like  cold  jelly,  but  I  managed  to  reply: 

"No,  I  never  did." 

' '  Well,  I  have ;  and  what  's  more,  I  feel  like  it  now, 
right  now." 


310     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIEAL 

It  occurred  to  me  that  the  man  must  be  insane,  and  I 
had  read  that  the  worst  thing  to  do  with  an  insane  man 
is  to  seem  to  be  afraid  of  him.  So  I  pulled  myself  to 
gether  with  a  violent  effort  and  said : 

"Do  you  feel  like  killing  any  one  in  -particular  or  do 
you  want  to  kill  just  anybody  I  * ' 

"I  don't  care  who  it  is;  but  I  've  got  to  kill  some  one. 
I  must  do  it;  that  's  all." 

I  saw  that  I  was  helpless,  for  it  would  be  very  easy  for 
a  maniac,  as  this  man  seemed  to  be,  to  pitch  me  off  the 
bridge  into  the  water,  and  it  was  useless  to  call  for  help 
in  that  loud  wind.  I  said: 

* '  I  should  n  't  think  there  'd  be  much  fun  in  that. ' ' 

He  stared  at  me,  and  a  crumpled  piece  of  paper 
dropped  out  of  his  hand.  The  bridge  where  he  stood  was 
curtained  with  canvas,  so  the  wind  did  not  blow  the  paper 
away.  It  suddenly  occurred  to  me  that  the  quickest  way 
to  impress  this  man  would  be  by  pretending  that  I  had 
perfect  confidence  in  him.  So  I  leaned  down,  putting  my 
self  frankly  at  his  mercy,  picked  up  the  paper,  and  handed 
it  to  him,  saying : 

"You  didn't  seem  to  notice  that  you  dropped  this." 

He  looked  into  my  eyes  for  so  long  a  time  that  I  could 
hardly  bear  it;  then  he  turned  his  back  quickly,  and 
walked  off.  As  soon  as  I  saw  the  way  clear,  I  ran  down 
the  ladder  that  led  from  the  bridge,  staggered  along  the 
unsteady  deck  and  down  the  unsteady  ladder  to  my  room, 
and  locked  the  door.  That  night  I  slept  with  my  door 
locked. 

We  did  not  get  to  Hong-Kong  until  the  fifteenth.  This 
miserable  trip  lasted  six  days.  But  on  the  afternoon  of 
the  fifteenth  we  steamed  in  between  the  mountains  that 
line  the  entrance  to  Hong-Kong,  and  the  next  day  we  went 
into  dry-dock. 

The  change  from  the  depressing  climate  of  Manila  to 
the  healthful  climate  of  Hong-Kong  was  delightful,  and 
so  was  the  change  from  shooting  Filipinos  to  talking  with 
ladies  in  their  pretty  robes. 


ADVENTURES  IN  A  MONITOR  311 

One  afternoon  I  walked  on  the  Plantation  Road.  The 
air  was  fresh  and  vivifying,  and  sent  a  strange  stimula 
tion  through  the  blood.  There  was  an  element  in  the 
breeze  that  entered  into  the  lungs  and  made  life  sweet  to 
live. 

One  warm  evening  I  dined  at  the  house  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Bolles,  high  up  the  mountain-side,  and  after  dinner 
we  sat  on  the  piazza;  and  the  soft  music,  the  tropical 
foliage,  and  the  graceful  costumes  of  the  ladies  imparted 
a  dreamy,  enervating,  luxurious  feeling.  Then  I  got 
into  my  chair,  which  had  one  long  pole  on  each  side,  and 
the  chair  was  picked  up  by  four  coolies.  I  had  a  long, 
slow,  swinging  ride  down  the  steep,  curving  pathway, 
amid  trees  and  shrubbery  of  all  kinds,  and  I  could  almost 
feel  the  moonlight  coming  down  on  me  through  the 
leaves ;  while  below  I  could  see  through  the  trees  and  the 
leaves  the  countless  lights  of  the  city  and,  farther  out, 
the  lights  of  ships  at  anchor  in  the  bay. 

The  next  afternoon  the  ship's  cook  acted  strangely, 
but  did  not  seem  to  be  intoxicated.  As  the  surgeon  was 
on  shore,  our  chief  medical  adviser  was  the  apothecary, 
and  I  had  him  investigate  the  case.  He  reported  that 
the  man  was  crazy,  and  that  it  would  be  rather  severe  to 
put  him  in  irons ;  that,  in  fact,  it  might  make  him  worse. 
He  added  that  he  could  give  the  cook  a  drug  that  would 
make  him  quiet.  He  gave  him  the  drug,  and  then  I  had 
the  cook  put  into  the  galley,  or  ship's  kitchen,  and  had 
the  doors  locked  on  him,  the  master-at-arms  first  taking 
away  all  such  things  as  knives  with  which  he  could  harm 
himself.  About  ten  o'clock  I  was  standing  alone  on  the 
after  end  of  the  quarter-deck  when  suddenly  I  saw  rush 
ing  toward  me  the  cook,  virtually  naked,  waving  in  his 
hand  a  big  iron  fork  about  two  feet  long  that  he  used  for 
handling  the  meat  when  he  was  making  soup.  He  did  not 
seem  to  see  me;  but  he  began  running  about  near  me, 
brandishing  the  fork,  which  was  heavy  enough  to  kill  a 
man,  and  executing  a  kind  of  clumsy  dance.  Fortunately, 
the  master-at-arms  discovered  his  escape  in  a  few  min- 


312     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

utes,  and  he,  with  several  others,  came  running  aft,  and 
quickly  overpowered  him.  The  cook  made  a  frantic  re 
sistance;  but  when  I  ordered  the  master-at-arms  to  put 
him  in  irons  and  chain  him  to  the  deck,  he  collapsed  and 
began  to  weep.  His  insanity  was  cured  from  that  hour. 

The  trip  back  to  Manila  was  as  pleasant  as  the  trip  to 
Hong-Kong  had  been  unpleasant.  The  ocean  was  just 
rough  enough  to  give  "the  old  flat-iron"  an  easy  motion, 
and  to  make  beautiful  effects  of  torrent  and  waterfall  as 
the  white  sea  rushed  along  her  decks  and  overboard. 

The  next  day,  after  reaching  Manila,  while  I  was  writ 
ing  to  my  mother,  and  telling  her  that  I  did  not  think 
that  there  would  be  any  more  war,  the  orderly  came  to 
me  and  said: 

"Sir,  the  captain  wishes  to  see  you." 

I  went  to  the  cabin,  and  the  captain  told  me  that  he  had 
just  received  orders  to  go  down  at  once  to  a  position  off 
the  town  of  Paranaque,  about  four  miles  south  of  where 
we  were.  He  said  the  admiral  had  received  information 
that  the  Filipinos  who  had  been  driven  south  by  the  army 
from  their  intrenchments  in  front  of  Fort  San  Antonio 
had  assembled  at  Paranaque  in  number  about  five  thou 
sand,  facing  our  forces  at  Pasai,  which  were  much  infe 
rior  in  numbers.  The  Monadnock  was  to  go  to  Para 
naque  and  try  to  drive  the  insurgents  out.  The  in 
surgents  were  said  to  be  armed  with  the  most  modern 
rifles,  and  to  have  smokeless  powder  and  several  field- 
pieces. 

So  I  was  to  go  into  battle  again,  after  writing  that  I 
was  not,  and  the  curious  part  of  it  was  that  the  day  was 
Sunday,  while  the  battle  of  the  first  of  May  had  been  on 
Sunday,  and  so  had  the  battle  of  the  fifth  of  February. 

We  cleared  ship  for  action,  and  at  three  o'clock  we 
weighed  anchor,  and  steamed  slowly  south  towards  Pa 
ranaque.  We  looked  forward  to  this  adventure  with 
much  interest,  for  we  did  not  know  what  we  should  meet ; 
but  we  felt  proud  that  the  old  Monadnock  was  still  to  hold 
her  position  as  the  fighting  ship.  All  during  the  Filipino 


ADVENTURES  IN  A  MONITOR  313 

War  she  had  been  the  only  ship  that  had  done  any  fighting 
at  all. 

We  steamed  slowly  to  Paranaque  this  bright,  hot  Sun 
day  afternoon,  and  then  stopped  abreast  of  the  town,  mo 
tionless.  The  water  was  flat,  and  there  was  almost  no 
breeze.  For  a  while  there  was  not  a  sound.  Several  of 
us  were  on  the  bridge.  The  men  at  the  ten-inch  guns  in 
the  turrets,  and  at  the  other  guns  in  the  fighting-tops  and 
on  the  superstructure,  were  at  their  stations,  their  nerves 
at  battle  tension;  and  they  were  kept  waiting,  waiting. 
This  condition  lasted  for  several  minutes,  it  was  very 
trying  to  the  patience.  Suddenly  there  broke  out  a  tre 
mendous  rattle  of  musketry  and  the  booming  of  field- 
guns,  and  we  heard  the  singing  of  bullets  and  the  whirring 
of  heavier  projectiles  in  the  air,  and  the  ping,  ping,  ping, 
as  they  fell  into  the  water.  Instantly,  the  Monadnock 
struck  out  with  her  four  ten-inch  guns  and  her  four-inch 
guns  and  all  her  rapid-firers,  and  quivered  in  every  part. 
The  noise  and  concussion  were  tremendous.  The  bridge 
shook  under  us  as  if  it  would  shake  to  pieces.  In  ten 
seconds  smoke  was  all  around  us,  and  there  was  not  breeze 
enough  to  carry  it  away,  and  while  we  heard  the  sound 
of  projectiles  passing  through  the  air  and  falling  into 
the  water,  we  could  see  nothing.  l  i  Cease  firing, ' '  sounded 
the  bugle;  then  "Commence  firing,"  when  the  smoke  had 
cleared  away;  then,  "Cease  firing,"  when  the  smoke 
thickened,  and  so  on.  Finally,  I  noticed  that  what  breeze 
there  was,  was  coming  from  aft ;  and  as  most  of  the  guns 
were  abaft  us,  the  breeze  was  blowing  the  smoke  on  to 
us;  so  I  suggested  to  the  captain  that  I  go  aft  on  the 
quarter-deck,  where  I  thought  there  would  be  but  little 
smoke,  and  send  word  to  him  of  what  was  happening. 
He  consented,  and  I  ran  down  the  ladder  to  the  deck,  then 
down,  then  along  the  armor  passage  below  the  water,  and 
then  aft  until  I  reached  the  ladder  that  went  up  to  the 
quarter-deck.  I  went  up  this  ladder,  which  came  through 
an  opening  in  the  deck.  All  around  the  opening  was  a 
steel  coaming,  or  wall,  about  three  feet  high.  I  stepped 


314     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

out  on  the  quarter-deck  and  began  to  look  toward 
Paranaque,  when  suddenly  I  felt  myself  pulled  down  vio 
lently  behind  the  coaming.  The  pull  was  so  sudden  that 
it  brought  me  to  my  knees.  I  was  under  considerable 
tension,  and  the  sudden  shock  almost  unnerved  me;  but 
I  soon  saw  I  was  among  several  men  who  were  crouching 
for  safety  in  this  place,  and  that  the  intention  toward  me 
was  friendly,  for  one  of  them  said: 

" Don't  stand  out  there,  sir;  it  's  no  use." 

I  got  up  and  stepped  outside,  but  I  soon  concluded  that 
I  could  see  just  as  well  from  behind  the  coaming.  So  I 
got  behind  it,  and  stood  there  with  only  my  head  exposed. 
The  whole  look  of  the  scene  on  the  shore  had  changed. 
We  had  seen  a  beautiful  picture  of  a  bright  Sunday  aft 
ernoon  in  a  Spanish  town,  with  its  characteristic  back 
ground  of  a  noble  church.  Now  there  was  not  a  person 
in  sight.  Three  buildings  were  on  fire,  the  church  had  a 
big  ugly  hole  near  the  bell-tower,  our  projectiles  were 
striking  the  beach  in  great  numbers,  and  heavy  clouds  of 
dust,  smoke,  and  flame  were  over  everything. 

I  sent  a  messenger  to  the  captain  to  say  that  the  in 
surgent  fire  was  very  light  now,  and  to  recommend  that 
he  stop  firing  long  enough  to  let  the  smoke  clear  away 
thoroughly,  so  that  our  gun  captains  could  get  a  fresh 
start.  He  did  this,  and  for  two  hours  we  fired  very  de 
liberately,  aiming  principally  at  the  intrenchments ;  but 
knowing  the  tendency  of  soldiers  of  the  Latin  race  to  get 
inside  of  churches,  we  fired  several  ten-inch  shots  at  the 
church. 

It  was  extraordinary  to  see  how  little  damage  the  ten- 
inch  shell  did,  for  the  church  was  only  sixteen  hundred 
yards  away,  and  I  saw  several  ten-inch  shells  weighing 
five  hundred  pounds  go  almost  in  the  front  door  and  ex 
plode,  and  several  hit  the  masonry ;  yet  we  could  not  see, 
when  we  had  finished,  that  we  had  done  very  much  dam 
age  to  the  church.  We  found  afterward  that  our  fire  had 
driven  the  insurgents  back  from  the  beach,  but  we  heard 
the  most  contradictory  stories  about  what  loss  of  life  we 


ADVENTURES  IN  A  MONITOR  315 

had  inflicted.  Some  accounts  put  the  loss  of  life  very 
high,  and  other  accounts  very  low;  but  the  damage  done 
to  other  things  than  people  was  certainly  very  small. 
This  gave  me  another  lesson  regarding  the  small  effect 
of  ship-fire  against  cities.  Our  fire  had  been  overwhelm 
ing  against  the  town,  and  yet  we  had  done  no  military 
damage,  beyond  driving  back  from  the  beach  a  few  thou 
sand  men.  We  had  not  made  them  surrender,  and  we 
had  not  received  any  offers  of  money  if  we  would  cease 
bombarding. 

The  week  following  our  little  battle  at  Paranaque  was 
excessively  uncomfortable.  The  awnings  were  kept  be 
low,  and  fires  were  kept  lighted  in  the  furnaces,  which 
were  under  the  wardroom.  The  consequence  was  that  we 
were  baked  with  the  heat  all  the  time.  If  we  went  out 
on  deck,  we  were  smitten  with  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun, 
with  no  breeze ;  and  if  we  went  into  our  quarters,  we  were 
in  a  temperature  of  ninety-three  day  and  night.  The 
insurgents  kept  coming  back  toward  the  ship  in  small 
groups,  firing  at  us,  and  then  running  away.  This  was 
extremely  annoying,  for  a  man  never  felt  like  going  out 
on  deck,  because  he  knew  he  might  get  hit.  We  fired  a 
great  deal  more  than  they  did,  because  we  fired  at  a  Fili 
pino  whenever  we  saw  one.  There  seemed  to  be  a  field- 
piece  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  north  of  the  church,  and 
we  fired  at  this  frequently.  We  could  see  the  insurgents 
gathered  around  it  at  intervals,  but  we  could  not  tell 
whether  they  were  working  at  the  gun  or  simply  strength 
ening  their  intrenchments. 

One  afternoon  we  saw  about  a  dozen  Filipinos  working 
there.  We  got  a  four-inch  gun  ready,  measured  the  dis 
tance  by  the  chart,  pointed  the  gun  very  carefully  by  the 
telescope  sight,  and  fired.  The  instant  before  the  gun 
fired  we  saw  the  insurgents  plainly ;  a  moment  after,  we 
saw  a  cloud  of  blue  smoke  exactly  where  the  insurgents 
had  been.  The  small  cloud  of  smoke  showed  that  the 
shell,  which  weighed  thirty  pounds,  had  exploded,  and 
hurled  its  fragments  in  all  directions.  No  insurgents 


316     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

were  to  be  seen,  and  no  more  were  ever  seen  there  after 
ward. 

The  two  months  from  the  last  of  March  to  the  last  of 
May  were  the  most  uncomfortable  I  have  ever  had  in  my 
life.  I  spent  five  months  once  in  the  Bering  Sea,  and 
they  were  stupid  enough;  but  to  be  kept  in  a  monitor 
with  a  temperature  of  93  degrees  day  and  night,  with 
mail  only  once  in  three  weeks,  and  that  a  month  and  a 
half  old;  to  be  shot  at  every  once  in  a  while,  and  never 
to  know  when  one  would  be  hit,  and  never  to  have  any 
amusement  or  excitement  at  all,  was  far  from  jolly.  The 
days  were  glary,  and  the  nights  oppressive.  Sleep  was 
almost  impossible  in  our  rooms,  even  with  electric  fans 
blowing  on  our  naked  bodies ;  and  so  most  of  us  slept  on 
deck.  We  of  the  wardroom  put  our  mattresses  on  the 
quarter-deck,  and  slept  there  as  best  we  could. 

One  morning  Morton  and  I  were  taking  our  regular 
swim  when  Morton  sang  out : 

4 'Sounds  to  me  like  a  bullet." 

''Me,  too, "I  said. 

We  then  noticed  that  a  number  of  bullets  were  falling 
near  us,  and  so  we  got  out  of  the  water  and  ran  to  our 
quarters.  We  ran  past  one  man,  who  was  struck  exactly 
in  the  knee-joint.  The  surgeon  said  the  man  would  never 
have  a  good  leg  again. 

All  this  time  the  Filipino  bumboat  women  used  to  come 
on  board  about  half  past  seven  every  morning  and  sell 
fruit  to  the  men.  Morton  seemed  to  arouse  the  liking 
of  one  of  these  women,  a  young  and  rather  pretty  woman, 
and  when  we  came  out  of  the  water  from  our  morning 
swim,  she  would  offer  him  an  orange  or  some  other  fruit, 
but  she  never  offered  me  anything. 

After  two  months  of  miserable  life,  spent  in  heat  and 
desultory  fighting,  unrelieved  by  any  pleasure  or  excite 
ment,  I  was  delighted  to  receive  orders  to  join  the  York- 
town  at  Ilo-Ilo  as  first  lieutenant. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

ADVENTURES    IN    THE   JORETOWN 

I  LEFT  Manila  about  one  o'clock  on  the  thirty-first  of 
May,  in  the  tiny  gun-boat  Samar,  one  of  thirteen 
bought  from  Spain  after  the  war.  It  was  commanded 
by  Ensign  McFarland.  We  steamed  out  of  the  bay  and 
headed  toward  the  south.  The  afternoon  was  beautiful, 
and  when  we  got  outside,  and  met  the  pleasant  southern 
breeze,  and  the  gun-boat  began  to  move  about  a  little  in 
a  graceful  way,  I  cannot  tell  the  feeling  of  happiness  I 
had.  At  last  I  was  away  from  the  oven  in  which  I  had 
been  baked  for  two  months;  I  was  going  to  a  new  ex 
perience,  I  was  going  to  a  real  ship,  not  a  monitor,  and 
I  was  to  be  executive  officer,  the  second  in  command. 

That  evening  at  six  o'clock  three  of  us  had  our  dinner 
on  the  quarter-deck,  and  I  found  that  I  had  a  natural 
appetite.  I  found  that  I  felt  alive  and  wanted  to  do 
things.  Then  I  realized  how  baked  and  worn  out  I  had 
become  in  the  Monadnock.  I  slept  delightfully  on  deck 
that  night,  and  we  spent  the  next  morning  in  steaming 
swiftly  through  the  beautiful  straits  and  bays  of  the 
Philippines.  On  one  green  islet  we  saw  a  native  leaning 
on  his  spear,  surrounded  by  his  family,  just  outside  the 
door  of  his  little  home.  He  seemed  as  independent  and 
prosperous  as  any  man,  and  to  have  on  his  fertile  islet, 
always  under  a  summer  sky,  everything  that  a  man  needs 
to  make  him  happy. 

I  found  the  duties  of  executive  officer  quite  different 
from  those  of  watch-officer  or  navigator.  As  watch-offi 
cer,  one  has  to  do  duty  for  four  hours  at  a  time,  and  then 
is  off  duty  a  definite  length  of  time.  As  navigator  one 
has  to  do  duty  whenever  there  is  duty  to  be  done,  but 

317 


318     FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  duties  of  executive  officer  require  a  "continuous  per 
formance."  For  instance,  the  first  lieutenant  sits  down 
about  one  o'clock  to  do  something;  and  just  then  the 
surgeon  interrupts  him  with  a  lot  of  papers  that  concern 
the  "first  luff"  very  little,  but  which  he  must  look  over 
carefully  and  initial  and  send  to  the  captain.  The  pay 
master  is  waiting,  and  as  soon  as  the  surgeon  is  gone, 
he  makes  a  request  that  the  men  of  the  crew  be  sent  down 
to  sign  their  names,  with  the  officers  of  their  divisions  to 
witness  their  signatures.  The  first  lieutenant  begins  to 
give  the  officer  of  the  deck  certain  directions  as  to  how 
and  when  to  do  this,  and  is  half  done  when  the  chief  engi 
neer  comes  to  report  that  coal-passer  Smith  has  given 
out  with  the  heat,  and  that  he  needs  some  one  else  in  his 
place  right  away.  Then  the  first  lieutenant  examines  the 
"watch,  quarter,  and  station  bill"  to  find  a  suitable  man, 
and  the  chances  are  that  he  gets  a  man  who  gives  out 
with  the  heat  on  the  very  first  watch.  Then  the  captain 
sends  out  an  order  that  he  wants  his  gig  immediately,  and 
then  changes  his  mind  and  orders  a  steam  launch  instead. 
Then  the  chief  master-at-arms  wants  to  know  if  he  can 
let  the  barber  shave  the  prisoners.  Then  John  Jones 
comes  and  asks  if  he  cannot  go  ashore  to-day  on  liberty 
instead  of  to-morrow,  because  his  friend  Pat  0 'Flaherty 
of  the  Monterey  is  going  ashore  to-day,  and  they  want  to 
see  each  other.  Then  Lieutenant  Plunkett  of  the  Petrel 
comes  to  call, -and  when  he  is  going,  Lieutenant  Werlich 
of  the  Monterey  comes  to  call.  Just  then  the  orderly 
reports  that  the  captain  is  coming  alongside.  The  first 
lieutenant  says  a  few  choice  words,  buttons  his  collar  to 
his  undershirt,  puts  on  his  blouse  and  cap,  and  hurries 
out  on  the  quarter-deck,  and  runs  against  the  orderly,  who 
is  coming  to  say  that  the  captain  is  only  passing  the 
ship  in  his  gig.  Then  two  parties  of  men  ask  permission 
to  visit  the  Monterey  and  Monadnock  respectively.  Then 
the  officer  of  the  deck  comes  and  reports  that  a  signal  is 
hoisted  that  he  never  saw  before,  and  asks  what  he  is  to 
do  about  it.  At  that  instant  the  captain  comes  on  board 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        319 

suddenly,  and  the  first  lieutenant  rushes  out  on  deck  to 
receive  him  with  his  collar  buttoned  on  one  side  only. 
The  captain  tells  the  first  lieutenant  to  have  the  gun 
taken  out  of  the  steam  launch  at  once.  When  this  is  half 
done,  the  first  lieutenant  receives  an  order  that  the  cap 
tain  wishes  to  have  the  gun  left  in,  because  an  emergency 
signal  is  reported  from  another  ship,  but  made  in  such  an 
unintelligible  way  that  he  wishes  him  to  have  a  signal 
sent  back  at  once,  asking  what  it  means.  Then  the  yeo 
man  brings  up  a  lot  of  papers  to  sign,  and  when  the  first 
lieutenant  has  just  .started  in,  the  captain  sends  for  him 
to  find  out  if  a  certain  gun-boat  is  at  her  station  near  the 
ship.  Two  minutes  afterward  he  sends  for  him  to  ask 
him  a  question,  and  five  minutes  later  sends  out  a  letter, 
and  says  not  to  forget  to  send  it  to  the  flag-ship  to-mor 
row  at  ten  o  'clock  in  the  morning.  And  so  on,  and  so  on 
all  that  day;  also  the  next  day,  and  the  day  after  that, 
including  Sunday. 

The  Yorktown  went  to  Manila  in  the  latter  part  of 
June,  and  from  there  went  to  Hong-Kong,  to  go  into  dry- 
dock.  I  had  made  many  trips  to  Hong-Kong,  and  had 
lived  there  quite  a  little,  so  that  Hong-Kong  had  come 
to  be  the  place  that  my  memory  held  the  most  vividly. 
Even  New  York  was  not  so  clear  to  me  as  Hong-Kong, 
and  as  the  end  of  my  cruise  drew  near,  I  was  surprised 
at  the  sentiment  I  had  for  it.  And  when  we  steamed 
through  the  grand  gateway  to  that  city,  and  anchored 
in  the  bay,  I  said  to  myself,  as  I  had  often  said  before, 
that  Hong-Kong  was  the  most  beautiful  place  in  all  the 
world. 

But  we  were  soon  on  our  way  back  to  Manila,  steaming 
over  a  quiet  sea;  and  it  was  delightful  to  us  on  deck. 
This  time,  I  was  very  glad  to  get  away  from  Hong-Kong. 
In  the  first  place,  my  regular  duties  kept  me  on  the  move 
as  much  as  I  liked  in  that  climate;  and  I  knew  so  many 
people  in  Hong-Kong,  and  these  people  had  such  excel 
lent  stomachs,  and  could  drink  so  much  whisky,  that  I 
had  a  hard  time.  People  were  continually  coming  on 


320     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAB-ADMIRAL 

board  that  I  knew;  and  the  fashion  in  Hong-Kong  is  to 
ask  each  one  to  have  a  drink.  When  I  went  ashore,  the 
conditions  were  the  same,  except  that  I  was  guest  instead 
of  host.  The  consequence  was  that  the  task  of  doing  my 
official  duties  and  keeping  absolutely  sober,  combined 
with  doing  my  social  duties  and  drinking  with  everybody, 
was  extremely  trying  and  not  a  little  dangerous. 

From  Manila,  we  went  to  Sulu,  which  the  Spaniards 
called  Jolo.  The  scene  here  was  bright  and  cheerful. 
Trim  white  houses  lay  at  the  foot  of  the  bay,  and  a  sub 
stantial  pier,  supporting  a  substantial  lighthouse,  ran 
out  from  the  town  into  the  bay.  A  large  village  was  to 
the  left  of  the  town  as  we  looked  at  it;  and  this  village 
was  built  on  piles,  so  that  the  houses  of  the  village  were 
about  six  feet  above  the  water.  We  knew  that  this  must 
be  a  Moro  village. 

The  Moros  are  the  inhabitants  of  the  Sulu  islands,  and 
are  quite  different  from  the  Tagals  of  the  Philippines, 
though  both  are  in  part  Malay;  and  although  the  Sulu 
Islands  are  included  among  the  Philippine  Islands,  they 
are  really  quite  distinct.  The  Moros  never  yielded  en 
tirely  to  the  Spaniards,  and  always  gave  them  trouble. 
They  were  governed  directly  by  the  sultan,  who  lived  in 
his  capital  not  far  from  Jolo,  and  was  always  recognized 
by  Spain  as  sultan,  though  he  paid  tribute  unto  Spain. 
In  the  early  days  these  Moros,  like  the  Moors  of  Morocco, 
were  pirates,  and  it  took  the  united  action  of  the  powers 
to  stop  their  piracy. 

In  Jolo  Bay,  were  many  boats  with  large  sails,  and 
these  sails,  instead  of  being  of  one  color,  as  sails  in  most 
other  places  are,  were  of  many  colors ;  and  the  whole  pro 
duced  a  very  attractive  and  gay  effect.  The  bay,  and 
town,  and  mountains,  were  beautiful,  and  the  temperature 
was  delightful.  The  Sulu  Islands  and  all  the  islands  in 
their  vicinity  are  much  cooler  than  the  islands  farther 
north,  for  some  reason  that  I  do  not  know ;  and  a  breeze 
almost  always  blows  among  them. 

Some  of  us  went  ashore  in  the  evening,  and  strolled 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        321 

through  the  town,  and  we  were  amazed  when,  after  a  very 
short  walk,  we  came  to  a  full  stop  against  a  stone  wall  at 
the  other  end  of  the  town.  The  town  had  the  well-built 
houses,  the  carefully  paved  streets,  the  fountains,  and  the 
shops  of  a  big  city ;  but  it  was  the  tiniest  town  I  ever  saw. 
It  was  as  if  some  one  had  taken  a  section  out  of  a  hand 
some  Spanish  city  and  put  a  wall  around  it. 

Our  stay  at  Sulu  (Jolo)  was  very  short,  and  we  got 
under  way  at  early  daylight  on  Tuesday  morning,  and 
steamed  to  the  west,  toward  the  town  of  Balabac,  on  the 
Island  of  Balabac,  three  hundred  and  fifty  miles  away. 
Our  trip  was  delightful,  steaming  swiftly  over  the  most 
beautiful  sea  in  the  world,  a  summer  sea,  the  Sulu  Sea, 
where  there  is  always  a  breeze,  but  never  a  gale. 

The  next  afternoon  about  one  o'clock  we  sighted  land 
marks  that  indicated  the  entrance  to  Balabac,  and  soon 
we  saw  the  lighthouse.  Sometime  later  we  could  see  the 
town,  its  white  houses  and  red  roofs  backed  by  the  usual 
luxuriant  green  vegetation  and  high  hills.  When  about 
half  an  hour's  distance  from  the  town  we  went  to  general 
quarters,  and  got  the  guns  and  ammunition  ready,  for 
we  did  not  know  what  we  should  find.  We  knew  that 
there  had  been  a  large  Spanish  garrison  there  and  a  fort, 
and  also  that  Balabac  had  been  a  naval  rendezvous,  and 
many  vessels  used  to  anchor  in  its  bay. 

We  steamed  into  the  harbor,  and  got  pretty  close  to 
the  town  and  forts;  but  we  did  not  anchor,  for  things 
looked  strange.  We  were  accustomed  to  have  boats  come 
out  and  meet  us,  but  no  boats  came.  We  were  accus 
tomed  to  see  people  on  the  beach  looking  at  us,  but  we 
saw  none.  If  the  Spaniards  or  the  Filipino  insurgents, 
or  whoever  might  be  there,  intended  either  to  resist  or  to 
welcome  us,  they  were  making  no  apparent  sign.  The 
situation  was  astonishing,  and  it  was  very  perplexing. 
The  only  thing  that  seemed  clear  was  that  whoever  was 
ashore  did  not  care  to  see  us  very  much.  But  what  were 
we  to  do?  Several  suggestions  were  made  and  rejected. 
Some  one  proposed  that  we  fire  a  shot  at  the  fort  to  draw 


322     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

its  fire;  but  Captain  Sperry  would  not  do  this,  because 
its  flag  was  not  displayed. 

Recognizing  my  opportunity,  I  asked  the  captain  to  let 
me  get  a  company  of  volunteers,  then  land,  and  make  a 
reconnoissance.  He  gave  permission,  and  called  for  vol 
unteers.  Of  course  there  was  no  trouble  in  getting  them. 
In  fact,  I  had  already  picked  fifty  good  men ;  for  before 
getting  near  Balabac  I  had  agreed  with  myself  that,  if 
anything  unusual  turned  up,  I  would  try  to  get  permis 
sion  to  take  an  armed  landing  party  ashore,  and  also  that 
I  would  invite  Ensign  Standley  and  fifty  men  to  go  with 
me.  Standley  had  distinguished  himself  at  Baler,  in 
Luzon,  by  going  ashore  at  night  with  Gilmore,  climbing 
a  high  tree  close  to  a  Filipino  insurgent  camp,  and  mak 
ing  a  sketch  of  the  country  at  early  daylight : — one  of  the 
bravest  and  most  officer-like  things  I  had  ever  heard  of. 

Standley  was  delighted,  of  course,  at  the  idea  of  going ; 
and  so  about  fifteen  minutes  after  entering  the  harbor 
we  started  ashore  with  two  cutters  full  of  men,  well 
armed.  I  directed  the  cutters  toward  a  point  on  the 
beach  that  was  clear,  and  was  not  on  a  line  with  the  fort, 
so  that  I  should  be  able  to  land;  and,  if  the  fort  opened 
fire  on  us,  the  Yorktoivn  could  fire  at  it  without  hitting 
us.  In  the  bow  of  each  boat  was  a  squad  of  eight  men, 
and  when  the  boats  grated  on  the  sand  of  the  beach,  these 
two  squads,  with  Standley  in  charge  of  one  squad,  and 
me  in  charge  of  the  other,  jumped  overboard,  and  ran  for 
ward,  in  directions  previously  decided  on,  as  squads  of 
skirmishers.  The  rest  of  the  little  force  jumped  over 
board  after  us,  and  formed  in  line  on  the  beach  in  charge 
of  a  petty  officer,  whom  I  told  to  go  to  the  assistance  of 
either  squad  if  he  heard  a  shot. 

I  found  nothing  important  in  my  direction,  and  I  soon 
returned  to  the  main  body  just  about  the  time  that 
Standley  did.  He  also  had  found  nothing  except  the 
main  road  of  the  town,  which  was  not  very  far  away. 
Detaching  a  few  men  as  scouts,  I  advanced  to  the  main 
road,  and  then  marched  down  it  toward  the  town  and 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        323 

the  fort,  my  men  formed  in  column  of  sections.  The  road 
was  good,  and  soon  led  us  into  a  town  of  some  size,  in 
which  were  houses  of  a  very  good  sort.  Many  of  them 
were  large  and  built  with  an  eye  to  pleasing  effect. 

But  we  saw  no  living  thing.  We  marched  through 
the  town  with  bayonets  fixed,  and  then  up  to  the  fort. 
We  found  the  fort  absolutely  deserted.  Feeling  sure  now 
that  the  town  must  be  deserted  also,  I  divided  my  com 
pany  into  small  squads,  and  we  examined  every  place. 
I  never  saw  drearier  sights.  I  went  myself  through 
many  of  the  houses,  and  there  saw  evidences  of  pleasant 
homes,  of  children  and  domestic  life.  There  were  gar 
dens  about  some  of  the  houses,  but  they  now  were  over 
grown  with  weeds,  and  coarse  grass  was  growing  in  the 
streets.  We  could  not  find  a  single  living  creature;  no 
man,  woman  or  child,  no  dog,  cat,  bird,  or  chicken.  At 
last  I  saw  a  toad  hopping  in  the  grass.  Not  long  after, 
on  going  through  the  weed-grown  cemetery,  I  saw  a  green 
lizard  crawling  on  a  tombstone.  The  toad  and  the  lizard 
were  the  only  living  things  there  were  in  all  this  village, 
which  recently  had  been  a  little  world,  as  every  village  is. 
And  the  silence  of  the  place,  and  the  forsakenness  of  it, 
and  the  slimy,  thin  deposit  on  the  stones,  and  the  oozy,  wet 
deadness  of  everything,  made  a  mental  impression  that 
none  of  us  will  ever  forget. 

I  remember,  too,  we  saw,  and  smelt,  a  well.  Some 
time  after  we  found  that,  when  the  war  broke  out  with 
the  United  States,  the  Spaniards  withdrew  most  of  the 
garrison,  and  the  natives  of  the  region  attacked  the  re 
mainder,  when  they  were  at  church,  and  killed  them, 
throwing  some  of  the  bodies  down  this  well.  After  that 
every  Filipino  that  lived  in  the  town  abandoned  it. 

I  went  back  to  the  Yorktown  with  a  feeling  different 
from  any  feeling  I  had  ever  had  before. 

Then  the  Yorktown  turned  her  nose  happily  to  sea, 
and  we  went  out  about  sunset;  and  soon  we  could  only 
dimly  see  the  fort  and  the  lighthouse,  and  the  red  roofs 
of  the  dwellings  of  the  deserted  village. 


324     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  KEAR-ADMIRAL 

The  Yorktown  headed  for  Cape  Melville,  at  the  ex 
treme  southern  end  of  the  Island  of  Balabac.  We  went 
there  to  investigate  the  condition  of  affairs  at  the  light 
house.  Cape  Melville  is  at  the  northern  side  of  the  pas 
sage  between  the  islands  of  Balabac  and  Borneo,  the 
highway  between  the  China  and  the  Sulu  Seas,  and  it 
was  important  that  its  lighthouse  should  be  kept  going, 
because  the  United  States  wished  to  do  all  things  to 
encourage  trade.  We  knew  that  the  lighthouse  had  been 
taken  in  charge  by  Americans,  and  that  there  had  been  a 
serious  fight  there  between  an  American  force  of  men-of- 
warsmen  and  the  Moros  of  the  island;  but  we  did  not 
know  how  the  fight  had  resulted.  We  had  food,  ammuni 
tion,  and  money  for  the  Americans  in  case  they  were  still 
there.  We  anchored  near  the  cape  about  eleven  o'clock 
the  following  morning,  just  off  the  entrance  to  a  little 
bay  through  which  one  had  to  go  in  order  to  reach  the 
landing-place,  whence  a  path  led  through  a  forest  to  the 
lighthouse.  We  did  not  see  the  sign  of  any  living  thing 
except  a  score  or  so  of  monkeys  of  tremendous  size  play 
ing  on  the  beach  not  far  away. 

I  asked  the  captain  to  let  me  take  an  armed  force,  land, 
and  march  up  to  the  lighthouse,  and  he  consented.  Just 
then  the  quartermaster  reported  a  canoe  coming  along 
the  little  bay,  apparently  headed  toward  the  ship.  The 
canoe  approached  closer,  came  through  the  line  of  break 
ers  across  the  bay,  and  then  began  to  toss  violently  in 
the  heavier  sea.  Finally  it  came  alongside  of  the  York- 
town,  and  we  were  astonished  to  see  that  one  of  its  occu 
pants  was  Bisset,  a  lieutenant  in  the  navy. 

Bisset  came  on  board,  and  said  that  he  had  taken  charge 
of  the  lighthouse  and  had  a  number  of  men  with  him  from 
the  Manila,  and  was  very  glad  indeed  to  see  us,  because 
his  men  were  getting  short  of  food.  He  said  that  the 
natives  appeared  to  be  cowed  since  their  fight  at  the  light 
house  about  a  month  before,  when  the  Americans  had 
killed  some  of  their  friends. 

About  half  past  one  I  started  off  with  three  boatloads 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        325 

of  men  and  provisions,  and,  guided  by  Lieutenant  Bisset, 
pulled  through  the  gap  in  the  breakers,  and  in  half  an 
hour  got  the  boats  alongside  of  a  rough  sort  of  pier  built 
out  from  the  beach.  We  had  divided  our  luggage  into 
as  small  boxes  as  possible,  and  these  we  carried  on  cap 
stan-bars,  each  capstan-bar  resting  on  the  shoulders  of 
two  men.  It  was  not  easy  to  get  all  the  provisions  ashore 
without  wetting  them ;  but  we  finally  succeeded,  and  then 
began  our  curious  march. 

I  had  thirty  armed  men,  and  thirty  unarmed  men  who 
carried  the  luggage.  Bisset  had  said  that  the  Moros  were 
not  hostile  nowr;  but  Captain  Sperry  thought  it  well  to 
be  prepared  for  trouble,  because  the  temptation  to  get 
possession  of  our  provisions  and  ammunition  by  the  sim 
ple  process  of  killing  the  men  carrying  them  through  the 
long,  winding  path  in  the  jungle  might  be  too  strong  for 
some  enterprising  Moro  warriors  to  resist.  I  put  one 
third  of  the  armed  force  ahead,  one  third  in  the  middle, 
and  one  third  behind.  It  was  impossible  to  put  any  on 
the  flanks,  because  the  path  was  too  narrow  and  the  vege 
tation  on  each  side  too  dense. 

The  distance  in  a  straight  line  from  the  landing  to  the 
lighthouse  was  only  about  a  mile,  but  it  was  a  gradual 
ascent,  and  the  path  was  winding,  and  some  of  the  bur 
dens  heavy;  so  it  was  an  hour  before  we  reached  the 
rocky  plateau  on  which  the  lighthouse  stands.  The  path 
lay  through  a  virgin  forest  more  dense  and  rich  and  beau 
tiful  than  any  I  had  ever  seen  or  dreamed  about,  and 
filled  with  lofty  trees,  and  through  the  openings  among 
the  trees  we  saw  small  spaces  of  blue  sky,  and  an  occa 
sional  bird  of  plumage  we  did  not  know,  but  beautiful  and 
bright,  and  sometimes  we  heard  the  sound  of  them  sing 
ing  in  the  branches.  Sometimes  a  quick  sound  to  the 
right  or  the  left  brought  our  attention  to  the  alert,  but 
in  the  dense  undergrowth  we  saw  nothing.  Sometimes 
we  thought  we  heard  a  rattlesnake,  and  probably  we  did ; 
but  we  saw  none. 

Suddenly  we  emerged  from  the  forest,  and  then  we 


326     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

found  ourselves  on  a  bare  and  rocky  plateau.  There, 
sharply  outlined  against  the  sky,  towered  the  lighthouse 
of  Cape  Melville. 

We  found  the  lighthouse  was  surrounded  by  a  high 
wall,  made  of  iron  in  some  parts  and  of  stone  in  others, 
which  inclosed  an  area  of  possibly  an  acre.  There  were 
several  houses  in  the  inclosure,  some  of  which  were  occu 
pied  at  present  by  our  men  from  the  Manila,  and  some 
by  the  lighthouse  keeper,  a  half  Moro,  and  his  family. 

I  ascended  the  winding  iron  staircase  inside  the  light 
house  (it  was  a  lighthouse  of  the  first  order),  and  then 
went  out  on  the  platform  at  the  top  that  encircled  the 
enormous  lantern.  My  admiration  was  aroused  by  the 
beauty  of  the  lantern  and  the  perfection  of  its  scientific 
design  and  mechanical  detail;  but  as  soon  as  I  turned 
my  back  to  it  and  looked  outward,  I  forgot  such  trivial 
things ;  for  I  was  almost  appalled  by  the  grandeur  of  the 
view.  Far  to  the  north  ran  the  magnificent  slopes  of 
Balabac,  covered  with  countless  trees ;  while  to  the  west 
and  the  south  and  the  east  there  was  nothing  but  the  blue 
ocean,  which  looked  as  smooth  as  the  sky  above.  The 
sky  and  the  ocean  merged  into  each  other  so  perfectly 
that  I  could  hardly  discern  the  horizon-line.  Up  in  that 
lighthouse,  on  that  high  plateau,  almost  in  the  sky,  I  felt 
very  much  alone ;  with  nothing  but  the  sky  and  the  clouds 
and  the  sea  for  my  companions. 

We  found  all  the  men  from  the  Manila  in  good  health, 
and  in  about  one  hour  we  began  to  retrace  our  steps.  On 
reentering  the  forest,  we  looked  back,  and  there  saw  the 
magnificent  lighthouse  guarding  the  passage  between  the 
China  and  the  Sulu  seas. 

Our  walk  back  was  in  a  lighter  mood  than  our  walk  to 
the  lighthouse,  and  we  soon  took  our  boats  and  went  back 
to  the  Yorktown. 

From  Cape  Melville  we  went  back  to  Zamboango,  and 
thence  to  Sulu.  We  started  from  Sulu  on  the  morning  of 
September  9,  and  convoyed  the  Buchuan  to  Siassi. 
Siassi  had  had  a  Spanish  fort,  and  now  the  American 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        327 

army  was  about  to  establish  an  American  fort,  or  post, 
there.  The  Buchuan  landed  her  troops,  and  perhaps  an 
hour  later  we  saw  the  American  flag  rise  quickly  to>  the 
top  of  the  flagstaff.  The  Yorktown  fired  twenty-one  guns 
in  salute,  and  then  steamed  back  to  Sulu. 

At  early  daylight  in  the  morning  of  September  21,  the 
Yorktown  got  under  way  with  four  army  officers  on  board, 
rounded  the  western  side  of  Sulu  Island,  steamed  then 
to  the  eastward,  and  about  ten  o'clock  anchored  off  the 
town  of  Maiambun.  The  Yorktown  could  not  get  closer 
to  the  shore  than  about  a  mile;  so  the  army  and  navy 
officers  went  ashore  in  boats. 

We  found  that  we  could  not  get  the  boats  very  near 
the  beach,  so  some  of  us  were  carried  ashore  by  sailors, 
some  were  carried  by  Moros,  and  some  went  in  canoes. 
Some  of  the  army  officers  took  off  their  shoes  and  socks, 
rolled  up  their  trousers,  and  waded  ashore ;  and  I  remem 
ber  remarking  to  the  captain  what  beautiful  legs  Colonel 
Goodale  had. 

The  town  of  Maiambun,  like  most  of  the  Moro  towns, 
is  built  on  stilts ;  so  that  the  first  floors  are  about  six  feet 
above  the  ground.  The  houses  were  gaily  decked  with 
brilliant  flags  and  banners,  and  the  men  and  women  were 
dressed  in  bright  attire.  There  were  several  thousand 
people  in  sight,  the  men  all  armed  with  barongs  and 
krises,  which  are  weapons  about  half-way  between  a 
meat  ax  and  a  sword.  We  were  ceremoniously  received, 
and  quickly  surrounded  by  a  body  of  horsemen;  and  I 
must  admit  that  this  gave  me  a  little  alarm.  Here  we 
were,  ten  unarmed  men,  on  shore  in  a  Moro  village,  and 
the  Yorktown  a  mile  at  sea !  Most  of  the  horsemen  were 
armed  with  rifles,  but  some  had  spears.  The  procession 
soon  started,  and  we  walked  in  column  about  a  mile  with 
our  escorts,  and  finally  reached  the  neighborhood  of  the 
royal  palaces. 

We  were  first  taken  to  the  temporary  palace  of  the  sul 
tana.  We  found  it  a  large  wooden  building,  the  first  floor 
raised  about  ten  feet  above  the  ground.  We  walked  up 


328     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIEAL 

a  wooden  stairway,  and  found  ourselves  in  a  very  large 
room  filled  with  armed  soldiers  and  with  women.  I  did 
not  like  the  look  of  things  at  all.  I  was  not  afraid  that 
the  sultana  intended  us  any  harm,  but  I  knew  that  the 
Moros  are  in  part  of  Malay  blood,  and  that  they  believe 
that  if  one  of  them  should  kill  a  Christian,  he  would  be 
sent  at  once  to  paradise. 

We  were  ushered  into  the  presence  of  the  sultana,  and 
we  saw  her,  clad  in  green,  coiled  like  a  snake  on  a  table ; 
and,  through  the  interpreter,  she  bade  us  welcome,  and 
said  she  loved  the  Americans,  and  she  knew  the  Ameri 
cans  loved  her,  and  she  knew  it  because  they  came  so  far 
to  see  her.  She  said  that  she  loved  the  Americans  as 
much  as  they  loved  her,  and  that  she  was  just  about  to  go 
to  see  them  when  she  heard  they  were  coming  to  see  her. 
Colonel  Goodale  replied  that  the  American  people  had 
heard  of  her  wisdom  and  goodness,  and  had  sent  us  to 
pay  her  a  visit  of  friendship  and  to  make  her  a  little 
present,  which  he  hoped  she  would  accept.  And  the  sul 
tana,  coiled  on  her  table,  kept  her  clear,  alert  eyes  fixed 
upon  him.  Then  she  replied  that  the  American  people 
were  very  noble,  and  that  she  was  sorry  that  she  had  so 
poor  a  home  to  receive  them  in,  but  she  hoped  that  they 
would  not  judge  her  great  love  by  the  smallness  of  her 
house.  Then  Colonel  Goodale  handed  her  a  bag  of  five 
hundred  dollars,  and  she  smiled,  chewed  her  betel-nut, 
and  let  the  red  juice  trickle  down,  and  one  of  her  servants 
held  the  beautiful  coral  bowl  into  which  the  sultana  spat. 
And  the  musicians  struck  the  tom-toms  and  beat  the  bells. 
Then  the  colonel  and  some  of  the  rest  of  us  said  flattering 
things,  and  she  replied  glibly  to  all.  Then  we  went  out 
at  last  into  the  sunshine,  safe  thus  far. 

The  sultana  was  not,  perhaps,  so  commonplace  a  woman 
as  some  others.  We  were  told  that  she  had  become  the 
wife  of  the  previous  sultan  after  having  killed  two  hus 
bands  ;  that  she  was  not  his  first  wife,  but  that  the  present 
sultan  was  her  son;  that  she  had  put  him  in  succession 
to  the  throne  by  the  simple  process  of  poisoning  his  elder 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        329 

brother  and  sister,  who  were  not  her  children,  and  their 
mother;  and  that  she  had  then  poisoned  her  husband, 
which  made  her  son  the  Sultan. 

We  were  now  escorted  to  the  palace  of  the  sultan.  We 
first  came  to  a  high  stone  wall,  in  which  was  a  large  iron 
gate  with  two  cannon  on  each  side;  and  as  we  passed 
through,  we  were  saluted  by  a  company  of  soldiers,  well 
uniformed  and  armed.  The  way  to  the  sultan 's  presence 
was  lined  with  pages,  all  in  European  dress.  We  found 
the  sultan  in  a  large,  square,  plain  room,  and  after  being 
presented,  we  went  to  an  adjoining  room,  where  there  was 
a  long  table  covered  with  a  sort  of  curious-looking  lunch. 
There  were  just  enough  chairs  for  us  ten  officers,  the  sul 
tan,  the  interpreter,  and  two  other  Moros  of  high  rank. 
At  the  sultan's  right  was  a  page,  on  his  knees,  holding 
a  bowl  into  which  the  sultan  spat  the  juice  of  the  betel- 
nut.  The  conversation  between  the  American  officers  and 
the  sultan  was  stormy ;  there  was  a  difference  of  opinion 
as  to  how  much  revenue  the  sultan  should  get  from  Siassi. 
The  sultan  wras  just  as  brutal  and  coarse  in  his  manner 
and  talk  as  his  mother  was  soft  and  wheedling.  We  soon 
noticed  that  there  was  a  Moro  stationed  exactly  behind 
the  chair  of  each  American  officer.  I  do  not  know  of  my 
own  sight  whether  there  was  one  behind  mine,  because  I 
did  not  like  to  look ;  but  I  saw  there  was  one  behind  every 
other  officer.  Each  Moro  had  a  barong  in  his  belt,  and 
we  knew  that  the  practice  of  a  lifetime  makes  the  Moros 
very  quick  with  the  barong;  so  much  so,  that  no  Moro 
ever  dares  to  put  a  hand  on  his  barong  unless  he  intends 
to  use  it.  In  the  same  way,  it  is  said,  in  some  parts  of 
the  West,  in  our  own  country,  no  man  ever  dares  to  put 
his  hand  near  his  right  hip-pocket,  where  his  revolver 
is  supposed  to  be,  unless  he  intends  to  use  it. 

Our  interview  lasted  two  hours ;  but  at  last  we  all  got 
away,  and  back  to  the  Yorktown,  and  I  knew  one  wTho 
felt  very  much  better  when  he  got  away.  And  I  know 
one  who  will  always  carry  in  his  mind  a  vivid  memory 
of  gaudy,  mounted  soldiers  with  spears,  and  unmounted 


330     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAK-ADMIRAL 

soldiers  with  barongs,  and  a  dense  vegetation,  and  a  she- 
devil  of  a  sultana,  in  green,  coiled  on  a  table,  spitting  the 
red  juice  of  the  betel-nut. 

The  Yorktown  went  back  to  Jolo,  and  we  found  that 
during  our  absence  an  incident  had  occurred  that  shows 
how  a  Malay,  when  once  his  anger  is  aroused,  loses  all 
self-control,  and  becomes  a  maniac.  A  party  of  about  a 
dozen  Moros  of  another  tribe  came  to  Jolo  and  did  some 
fishing  in  the  bay.  The  Jolo  tribe  protested,  and  the 
visiting  tribe  stopped  fishing  at  once  and  went  ashore. 
Up  to  this  time,  and  for  some  hours  after,  all  their  inter 
course  was  friendly;  but  later  in  the  day  something  oc 
curred  that  aroused  anger.  Then  the  Jolo  tribe  fell  upon 
the  others  and  killed  them,  and  literally  chopped  every 
body  to  pieces ;  they  chopped  each  body  into  small  bits. 

The  Yorktown  then  started  to  Sandakan,  a  town  on 
the  northeast  coast  of  Borneo.  Sandakan  looked  very 
attractive  as  we  steamed  past  the  high  bluffs  into  San 
dakan  Bay,  and  we  soon  anchored  in  front  of  it,  and 
found  ourselves  in  a  beautiful  harbor  surrounded  by  high 
green  hills.  The  houses  were  white,  with  red  roofs,  and 
an  English  church  showed  its  spire  and  cross  above  the 
trees. 

We  found  Sandakan  a  very  interesting  place.  There 
was  a  fine  museum,  with  many  splendid  specimens  of 
rare  animals  and  birds.  There  was  also  an  excellent 
club,  where  the  officers  could  go  and  play  billiards.  The 
sailors  could  go  ashore,  walk  about  the  magnificent  hills, 
and  become  acquainted  with  the  people;  and  those  who 
wished  to  get  drunk  and  fight  could  do  so. 

The  next  evening  (Sunday)  the  governor  gave  us  a 
dinner  party  at  the  government  house.  I  think  five  of  us 
went.  The  government  house  was  reached  by  a  walk  of 
perhaps  five  minutes  from  the  landing,  and  the  latter 
part  of  the  walk  was  along  a  winding  road  of  gradual 
ascent,  among  fine  trees.  We  soon  found  ourselves  in 
front  of  a  large  white  mansion,  and  when  we  neared  it, 
we  heard  four  sonorous  notes  of  singular  power  and 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        331 

sweetness.  Getting  nearer,  we  saw  there  was  a  magnifi 
cent  Japanese  bell  at  the  foot  of  the  stairway  leading  to 
the  entrance,  and  a  sentry  standing  by  it.  We  afterward 
learned  that  it  was  part  of  his  duty  to  note  the  number 
of  guests  arriving,  and  strike  that  number  on  the  bell. 

We  went  up  the  stairway,  and  soon  found  ourselves 
in  a  very  large  room,  open  on  nearly  every  side,  where 
a  considerable  company  was  gathered.  Most  of  the  men 
were  in  civilian  evening  dress,  but  some  were  in  a  simple 
uniform.  The  ladies  were  dressed  in  white,  with  low 
neck  and  short  sleeves ;  and  their  graceful  draperies  were 
in  delightful  harmony  with  the  soft  light  and  the  pleasant 
calmness  of  the  night. 

A  large  company  sat  down  at  dinner.  The  dishes  were 
delicious,  each  wine  was  at  the  correct  temperature,  and 
the  servants  were  such  as  only  people  who  have  lived  in 
Asia  know  anything  about.  After  dinner  we  had  music 
and  pleasant  talk.  It  was  delightful  to  be  in  civilization 
once  again,  and  it  came  with  no  little  surprise  to  us  to 
find  in  Borneo  as  interesting  and  cultivated  people  as  we 
had  ever  met.  We  had  always  associated  Borneo  in  our 
minds  with  "the  wild  man  of  Borneo." 

We  went  from  Sandakan  back  to  the  lighthouse  at  Cape 
Melville,  and  from  there  to  Labuan,  because  Captain 
Sperry  wished  to  telegraph  to  the  admiral  at  Manila  for 
instructions. 

The  next  evening  the  governor  gave  a  dinner  party  at 
the  residency.  We  found  him  a  very  interesting  man. 
He  had  some  large  scars  on  his  face,  and  we  were  told 
that  a  few  years  before,  while  at  the  race-track  at  Singa 
pore,  he  heard  the  cry,  "Amuck!  Amuck!"  Instead  of 
thinking  of  himself,  as  most  other  people  did,  he  tried 
to  save  some  women  and  children;  and  he  had  just  suc 
ceeded  when  the  Malay,  running  amuck,  rushed  at  him, 
and  cut  both  sides  of  his  face  open. 

On  Saturday  evening,  as  I  have  said,  the  governor 
gave  us  a  dinner  party.  On  Sunday  the  ladies  of  the 
place  came  on  board  and  took  tea  with  us  in  the  afternoon. 


332     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

In  the  evening  the  captain  of  the  Yorktown  gave  a  dinner 
party  to  the  governor's  wife,  to  which  I  had  the  good 
fortune  to  be  invited.  On  Monday  Mrs.  Buckland  gave  a 
lawn  party  at  the  golf-links,  and  I  had  the  good  luck  to 
be  asked  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hardie  to  go  home  and  take 
dinner  with  them  afterward.  Mr.  Hardie  was  a  Scotch 
man,  and  his  wife  a  beautiful  Australian.  We  had  a  most 
pleasant  dinner. 

A  venerable  gentleman  with  a  long  white  beard,  a 
Scotchman  and  intimate  friend  of  Mr.  Hardie 's,  was  of 
the  party.  While  we  were  waiting  for  dinner,  he  said: 

"Lieutenant,  won't  you  have  a  peek?" 

"Thank  you  very  much,"  I  said,  not  knowing  what  a 
peek  was. 

He  mixed  a  drink  that  proved  to  be  much  like  gin  and 
bitters,  with  other  things  in  it,  and  we  drank  it,  and  I 
liked  it  very  much.  After  a  short  talk  he  said : 

"Lieutenant,  won't  you  have  a  peek!" 

"Thank  you  very  much,"  I  said. 

The  old  gentleman  drank  his  second  peek  with  evident 
relish,  but  I  was  afraid  to  do  more  than  taste  mine. 
Soon  he  said  again : 

"Lieutenant,  won't  you  have  a  peek?" 

I  answered  hesitatingly  that  I  had  had  two  peeks  al 
ready. 

"That  's  so,"  he  replied.  "We  'd  better  have  brandy 
and  soda." 

Before  I  could  decline,  he  called  a  servant  and  ordered 
two  brandies  and  sodas.  The  servant  was  well  trained, 
and  in  a  very  few  minutes  he  brought  in  two  big  tumblers, 
filled  with  a  cold,  bubbling  liquid  that  was  delicious, 
though  a  little  strong. 

The  white-bearded  patriarch  drank  his  pint  in  the  way 
in  which  other  people  drink  soda-water.  I  was  afraid 
to  drink  mine ;  but  I  was  also  afraid  to  violate  the  sacred 
laws  of  hospitality,  and  so  I  compromised  with  the  devil, 
and  drank  a  little.  At  dinner  the  old  gentleman  drank 
two  tumblers  of  Scotch  and  soda,  besides  white  wine  and 


ADVENTUBES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        333 

red  wine  and  plenty  of  port.  When  the  rest  of  us  took 
black  coffee,  he  took  a  large  cup  of  tea,  into  which  the 
hostess  poured  Scotch  whisky  instead  of  hot  water;  and 
when  we  had  cigars  and  liqueurs,  he  showed  a  liking  for 
all,  but  a  partiality  to  cognac.  I  looked  forward  with 
extreme  anxiety  to  the  time  when  he  would  have  to  rise 
from  the  table,  and  walk  into  the  drawing-room.  But  he 
got  up  when  the  rest  of  us  did,  and  walked  with  absolute 
steadiness;  and  his  speech,  gait,  and  gestures  were  pre 
cisely  as  they  were  before  he  took  his  first  peek. 

The  Labuan  idea  about  the  amount  of  whisky,  gin, 
bitters,  port  wine,  and  liqueurs  that  I  could  drink  was  so 
far  distant  from  the  truth,  and  yet  so  firmly  fixed  in  my 
good  hosts'  minds,  that  I  had  to  carry  on  friendly  de 
fensive  warfare.  I  was  able,  however,  at  half  past  nine 
to  leave  the  house  in  pretty  good  condition  and  walk 
down  to  a  boat,  escorted  by  their  Malay  water-carrier. 
The  boat  was  a  canoe,  and  I  held  on  very  tightly  and  bal 
anced  myself  very  carefully  as  I  was  paddled  to  the 
Yorktown  in  the  darkness. 

The  next  day  Mr.  Hughes  was  "at  home,"  and  we 
Americans  played  croquet,  with  English  mallets,  very 
badly.  Then  the  English  consul,  Mr.  Keyser,  took  us 
up  to  his  enormous  house,  and  we  stayed  until  dinner  at 
eight  o'clock.  I  took  in  to  dinner  a  young  married 
woman,  a  bride  fresh  from  school  in  England.  After 
dinner,  at  half  past  ten,  we  were  taken  to  the  governor's, 
and  there  we  had  a  hop  which  lasted  until  half  past  two. 
It  was  very  warm,  but  we  danced,  nevertheless.  I  danced 
every  dance,  and  ladies  being  somewhat  scarce,  I  danced 
a  waltz  and  two-step  with  the  bridegroom,  Mr.  Llewyllyn, 
a  handsome  young  Welshman.  The  next  day  was  com 
paratively  quiet,  but  the  day  after  a  large  dinner  party 
was  given  by  the  Hardies,  which  was  very  fine.  There 
were  fifteen  at  table,  and  ten  servants,  all  of  them  Malays 
or  Chinese,  who  were  directed  by  a  "number  one  boy," 
who  did  not  wait  on  the  people  himself,  but  directed  the 
others.  And  when  I  thought  of  the  frail  wooden  house, 


334     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

resting  on  stilts  above  the  ground,  as  all  the  houses  in 
that  country  do,  and  then  of  the  elaborate  dinner,  I  said 
to  myself  that  the  dinner  must  have  cost  more  than  the 
house  did. 

Next  day  Mrs.  West  gave  a  tea  party  at  the  golf-links, 
and  that  night  Mr.  Keyser  gave  a  lawn  party  to  our 
sailors,  where  they  played  billiards  and  croquet,  drank 
beer,  sang  songs,  and  gave  cheers  till  they  were  hoarse. 
Friday  the  Yorktown  gave  a  hop  and  reception,  and  fair 
women  and  brave  men  came  on  board,  drank  our  punch, 
and  danced.  The  native  Labuan  band  was  on  board,  and 
about  eight  o  'clock  they  played  the  ' '  Star-Spangled  Ban 
ner,"  "God  Save  the  Queen,"  "John  Brown's  Body," 
etc.,  ending  with  the  inevitable  "He  's  a  Jolly  Good 
Fellow." 

We  found  Mr.  Keyser  a  most  interesting  man.  He 
was  a  bachelor,  and  lived  in  a  fine  house  full  of  books  and 
servants.  All  his  servants  were  Malays,  and  included 
several  families  whom  he  had  brought  with  him  from 
his  previous  station.  Mr.  Keyser  had  a  great  affection 
for  the  Malays,  and  said  he  always  wished  to  live  among 
them,  because  they  are  kinder  and  more  faithful  than 
any  other  people.  He  said,  however,  that  it  is  necessary 
to  understand  the  Malay,  because  if  a  Malay's  anger  is 
once  roused  by  a  sense  of  injustice  or  by  jealousy,  the 
ordinarily  indolent,  impassive  man  becomes  a  maniac, 
and  runs  amuck,  and  kills  every  one  he  can,  friend, 
mother,  and  foe,  with  a  fury  that  knows  no  limit  and  no 
discrimination.  I  could  not  help  thinking  how  closely 
this  bore  on  the  whole  Philippine  question,  for  the  Fili 
pino  is  in  part  Malay. 

Saturday  the  Allards  gave  a  dinner  party,  and  on  Sun 
day  preparations  were  made  to  receive  his  royal  high 
ness,  the  Rajah  of  Sarawak,  sometimes  called  the  "Rajah 
of  Borneo."  We  were  curious  to  see  him,  because  he 
occupied  a  most  extraordinary  position.  Years  ago  he 
was  a  lieutenant  in  the  Royal  Navy,  when  his  uncle,  the 
great  rajah,  died,  and  left  him  this  kingdom  by  the  sea. 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        335 

We  salute  the  rajah  with  the  royal  salute  of  twenty-one 
guns,  but  the  English  salute  him  with  only  seventeen 
guns,  because  in  some  way  his  domains  are  under  the 
protection  of  the  British  Government.  His  Highness 
did  not  appear,  however,  until  the  next  day,  and  I  lost 
my  chance  of  meeting  him;  for  though  Consul  Keyser 
gave  him  a  dinner,  I  was  on  duty.  Some  others  met  him 
on  shore  at  the  dinner,  and  they  said  he  looked  a  little 
like  Admiral  Dewey,  and  was  a  very  alert  and  charming 
man  over  seventy  years  of  age. 

At  seven  o'clock  the  following  morning  the  governor 
and  his  family  came  on  board,  and  we  sailed  for  the 
island  of  Kagayan  Sulu,  where  we  arrived  in  a  few 
hours.  That  afternoon  a  party  went  ashore  and  erected 
a  flagstaff.  The  next  forenoon  I  took  ashore  a  section 
of  men,  and  we  formed  about  the  flagstaff.  Soon  all 
was  made  ready  by  signal  between  the  YorJctown  and 
the  shore.  Then  a  large  American  flag  was  hoisted  to 
the  mast,  my  little  party  presented  arms,  the  Yorhtoivn 
fired  a  salute  of  twenty-one  guns,  and  Kagayan  Sulu 
belonged  to  the  United  States. 

The  YorJctown  went  to  Jolo  for  a  couple  of  days,  then 
to  Zamboango,  then  to  Port  Mazinluk,  a  miserable  place 
about  twenty  miles  from  Zamboango,  where  there  was 
nothing  to  see  but  flat  water  and  land,  and  some  villages 
far  away.  Datto  Mandy,  the  chief  of  the  principal  tribe 
in  the  vicinity,  was  friendly  to  the  United  States,  but 
there  was  a  large  force  of  Moros  opposed  to  him,  and 
we  went  there  to  give  him  support.  We  stayed  at  this 
wretched  place  for  two  weeks  with  nothing  to  do  or  think. 
Our  principal  interest  was  in  watching  the  growth  and 
unfolding  of  Thomas  Allen.  "Tommy"  was  the  son  of 
an  Englishman  and  a  Moro  woman  of  Borneo.  He  was 
twelve  years  old,  and  he  had  been  taken  by  Captain 
Sperry  on  board  as  interpreter,  because  he  could  speak 
Moro,  Spanish,  and  English.  He  was  as  bright  as  a  wed 
ding-ring,  and  had  been  assistant  organist  in  the  little 
Episcopal  church,  and  his  kinds  of  tricks  were  not  the 


336     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

kinds  that  men-of-war 's-men  were  accustomed  to.  Then 
he  had  an  interesting  appetite.  He  had  a  little  table  by 
himself  in  the  wardroom,  where  he  ate  his  regular  meals 
three  times  a  day.  Then  we  could  see  him  sitting  with 
the  Chinamen  and  eating  their  rice  and  chicken ;  and  be 
sides  that,  he  made  friends  with  a  lot  of  men  in  the  ship, 
and  would  go  to  their  tables  and  eat  with  them. 

General  Bates,  with  his  staff  and  a  party  of  naval  men, 
went  ashore  one  evening  at  Bongao  and  were  entertained 
with  a  spear-dance  by  the  natives.  The  Moro  warriors 
danced  dances  that  seemed  to  indicate  the  rousing  of  war 
like  passion,  beginning  slowly  and  working  up  gradually 
into  what  seemed  a  fierce  exaltation;  meanwhile,  the 
women  beat  excitedly  on  bronze  bells  of  different  kinds, 
and  the  fire  flames  lighted  up  their  features. 

General  Bates  wished  to  communicate  with  the  Sultan 
of  Palawan,  and  so  we  went  to  his  capital,  Marangas. 
The  whole  neighborhood  was  uncharted,  and  we  were 
quite  sure  that  we  should  get  aground.  We  finally  got 
aground.  Then  we  sent  out  the  anchor  that  we  always 
kept  over  the  stern,  backed  the  engines,  and  hauled  on 
the  wire  hawser  until  we  got  off  in  about  an  hour. 

The  Sultan  of  Palawan  came  on  board  the  next  after 
noon  with  a  large  retinue  of  picturesque  warriors  to  make 
his  obeisance  to  the  United  States.  I  do  not  remember 
much  about  it  except  that  he  put  his  hand  in  General 
Bates 's,  and  General  Bates  led  him  about  the  ship.  Gen 
eral  Bates  attracted  and  kept  the  confidence  of  everybody 
by  the  evident  sincerity  of  his  character.  Some  people 
could  not  understand  how  a  general  could  be  so  modest. 

The  Yorktown  went  to  Zamboango  about  the  fifteenth 
of  December,  and  on  the  thirty-first,  in  the  evening,  the 
Iris  came  in.  A  boat  from  the  Iris  came  alongside  while 
I  was  a  sitting  on  the  poop.  I  saw  an  officer  in  white 
uniform  coming  over  the  side,  and  I  recognized  him  as 
my  classmate  Bowyer.  He  said,  "How  are  you,  Jim? 
I  'm  your  relief." 

I  went  to  bed  that  night  about  twelve  o  'clock  and  I  said 


ADVENTURES  IN  THE  YORKTOWN        337 

to  myself,  "Your  cruise  is  over,  and  your  work  is  done." 
As  I  lay  in  my  bunk  I  recalled  the  trip  of  the  little  Petrel 
across  the  great  Pacific ;  then  meeting  my  wife  and  little 
daughter  in  Yokohama;  then  the  cruise  of  the  Petrel  in 
Korea  and  northern  China,  while  they  went  through 
Korea  to  Seoul,  and  through  China  to  Pekin,  and  the 
Great  Wall.  Then  I  recalled  the  Petrel's  visit  to  Shang 
hai,  Ningpo,  Fu-chau,  Amoy,  Swatow  and  Hong-Kong, 
and  the  social  doings  there;  then  the  war  preparations 
in  Hong-Kong,  and  the  many  interesting  things  that  hap 
pened  in  the  Spanish  and  the  Filipino  wars.  I  reminded 
myself  that  the  captain  of  the  Petrel  had  reported  me 
for  "eminent  and  conspicuous  conduct  in  battle,"  and 
that  Dewey  had  included  my  name  in  a  short  list  of  men 
mentioned  by  him  for  "heroic  conduct." 

As  I  went  off  to  sleep,  I  said  to  myself,  "It  's  all  over 
now,  old  fellow;  your  work  is  done,  and  you  're  going 
home."  Just  then  I  heard  the  orderly  say,  "Mr.  Fiske, 
the  captain  wants  to  see  you."  I  got  up  and  dressed, 
and  went  into  the  cabin.  The  captain  said,  "I  Ve  heard 
that  a  steamer  is  aground  in  Caldera  Bay;  please  make 
preparations  at  once  for  getting  under  way  and  going  to 
her  assistance." 

I  left  the  Yorlctown  on  the  second  of  January,  1900, 
with  orders  to  go  home  by  the  U.  S.  Transport  Solace. 
But  on  getting  to  Manila  on  the  tenth,  I  got  permission 
from  Admiral  Watson  to  go  home  by  mail-steamer  at  my 
own  expense. 

An  extremely  disagreeable  trip  in  the  Iris  got  me  to 
Hong-Kong,  and  then  I  took  off  my  uniform  and  folded 
it  away  and  put  on  civilian  dress,  with  a  sigh,  and  yet 
with  a  heart  so  light  that  I  never  expected  it  to  be  so  light 
again. 

I  left  Hong-Kong  in  the  Coptic  on  the  nineteenth,  and 
went  to  Nagasaki,  and  thence  through  the  beautiful  in 
land  sea  to  Kobe  and  Yokohama,  revisiting  the  scenes 
of  many  unforgotten  experiences  and  adventures. 

My  trip  across  the  Pacific,  where  I  had  all  the  pleas- 


338     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIKAL 

ures  of  seagoing,  and  none  of  the  responsibilities,  was 
pure  happiness;  and  I  knew  that  I  was  going  home  to 
family  and  friends  and  to  the  rest  that  I  had  earned. 
I  occupied  myself  principally  in  talking  with  the  delight 
ful  company  on  board,  and  I  remember  one  evening  we 
had  a  little  dance,  when  the  sea  was  smooth,  and  the 
moon  was  shining  softly. 

Two  days  in  San  Francisco,  and  then  I  found  myself 
in  real  civilization  on  an  east-bound  express.  Five  days 
afterward  I  reached  New  York,  and  joined  my  family, 
then  living  at  the  Plaza.  That  afternoon  we  drove  to 
Columbia  University,  where  Mr.  Low  was  giving  a  recep 
tion  in  the  Low  Library,  just  presented  by  him  to  the 
university.  There  I  met  many  friends  of  many  years, 
and  they  said  kind  things  to  me. 

And  I  sat  by  my  wife  under  that  beautiful  dome,  and 
watched  the  fashion  and  wealth  and  culture  of  the  most 
delightful  city  in  the  world.  And  I  closed  my  eyes  a 
moment,  and  saw  the  dim  outline  of  Corregidor  and  the 
sunrise  on  Manila  Bay  and  the  smoke  of  the  guns  of  the 
Spanish  fleet. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

SHORE    DUTY,    TORPEDOES,    SEMAPHORES,    TELESCOPE-MOUNTS, 
AND    GUN-SIGHTS 

I  ARRIVED  home  on  February  22,  1900.  Shortly 
after  I  received  orders  to  assume  the  duties  of  in 
spector  of  ordnance  at  the  works  of  the  E.  W.  Bliss 
Company,  in  Brooklyn.  The  Bliss  Company  was  en 
gaged  in  making  torpedoes  and  projectiles  for  the  navy. 

I  assumed  my  duties  at  once,  and  found  the  work  ex 
ceedingly  interesting  and  instructive.  At  that  time  the 
torpedo  was  not  highly  regarded  by  the  majority  of  offi 
cers  in  our  navy  or  in  any  other  navy  and  was  kept  alive 
by  the  exertions  of  an  obstinate  minority.  The  chief  alle 
gation  against  it  wasr  and  always  had  been,  that  it  had 
never  accomplished  anything  in  war;  and  when  one  re 
marked  that  it  was  hardly  developed  yet  and  was  a 
weapon  of  the  future  rather  than  of  the  past,  the  answer 
came  back  that  it  had  never  accomplished  anything  in 
war.  The  situation  was  the  conflict  as  old  as  the  world 
between  men  with  imagination  and  men  without  it. 

At  this  time,  Mr.  Frank  M.  Leavitt,  the  chief  engineer 
of  the  Bliss  Company,  was  developing  his  invention  of 
the  superheater,  by  means  of  which  he  superheated  the 
compressed  air  in  the  air-flask,  and  thus  increased  the 
energy  stored  in  it.  He  hoped  to  improve  greatly  the 
range  and  speed  of  automobile  torpedoes.  His  idea  was 
evidently  so  correct  scientifically  and  so  valuable  prac 
tically  that  I  did  all  I  could  with  propriety  to  help  it 
along,  and  I  had  the  satisfaction  before  I  completed  my 
tour  of  duty  of  conducting  the  first  test  of  the  superheated 
torpedo.  The  test  was  passed  successfully,  and  super 
heated  torpedoes  are  now  used  the  world  over. 

My  duties  at  the  Bliss  Company  were  purely  of  a  rou- 

339 


340     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

tine  character;  but  I  was  able  to  make  one  suggestion, 
and  to  have  it  adopted,  which  brought  forth  fruit  in  the 
future.  This  suggestion  I  wrote  in  an  official  letter  to 
the  Bureau  of  Ordnance;  and  it  was  to  make  a  careful 
effort  to  adapt  the  turbine  to  the  automobile  torpedo. 
The  suggestion  was  adopted,  and  a  series  of  experiments 
was  then  carried  out  under  the  superintendence  of  Mr. 
Leavitt,  with  the  authority  of  the  bureau,  by  which  a 
turbine  torpedo  was  eventually  developed  that  was  a 
great  success.  The  turbine-driven  torpedo  gradually 
displaced  the  reciprocating-engine  torpedo  in  our  navy, 
and  now  I  believe  all  the  American  torpedoes  are  tur 
bine-driven. 

The  range  required  of  the  first  superheated  torpedo 
was  only  fifteen  hundred  yards,  but  I  became  much  im 
pressed  during  the  tests  of  that  torpedo  with  the  possi 
bility  of  achieving  still  longer  runs,  and  by  means  of  a 
more  powerful  gyroscope  of  making  the  torpedo  more 
accurate.  I  was  detached  and  sent  to  the  United  States 
battle-ship  Massachusetts  as  executive  officer  in  Febru 
ary,  1902.  Shortly  after  joining  the  Massachusetts,  I 
wrote  a  private  letter  to  the  Bliss  Company,  asking  if  it 
would  not  be  possible  to  make  a  torpedo  which  would 
run  for  ten  thousand  yards  or  even  twenty  thousand 
yards.  I  received  a  polite,  but  non-committal,  answer, 
and  I  have  been  told  since  that  my  letter  caused  certain 
officials  of  the  company  to  suggest  that  I  was  becoming 
mentally  deranged.  As  is  well  known,  torpedoes  now 
have  a  range  of  thirteen  thousand  yards,  and  are  achiev 
ing  longer  and  longer  ranges  with  each  succeeding  year ; 
so  that  a  range  of  twenty  thousand  yards  is  already  in 
sight. 

Before  I  had  left  New  York  to  join  the  Petrel,  the  idea 
had  occurred  to  me  of  making  a  whistle,  which  could  be 
operated  by  the  officer  of  the  deck,  and  give  warning  to 
men  in  distant  compartments  of  the  ship  when  the  water 
tight  doors  were  to  be  closed,  so  as  to  obviate  the  chance 
of  men  being  locked  in  those  compartments  in  case  a 


SHORE  DUTY,  TORPEDOES,  SEMAPHORES     341 

threatened  collision  necessitated  closing  those  doors.  A 
few  preliminary  experiments  that  I  made  on  board  the 
Brooklyn,  then  building  at  Philadelphia,  showed  the 
practicability  of  the  scheme.  The  Western  Electric  Com 
pany  took  it  up  seriously  at  once ;  so  that  I  found  on  my 
return  to  New  York  that  all  of  the  new  ships  were  being 
equipped  with  my  "solenoid  warning  whistle."  The 
solenoid  was  the  electric  means  that  operated  it.  This 
device  was  put  into  all  the  ships  for  several  years ;  but  it 
was  gradually  replaced  by  a  device  that  was  similar,  ex 
cept  that  the  sound  made  was  more  like  that  of  an  auto 
mobile-horn. 

Not  long  after  I  had  left  New  York  to  join  the  Petrel, 
my  semaphore  system  had  been  established  on  one  mast 
of  the  U.  S.  S.  New  York,  flag-ship  of  the  North  Atlantic 
Fleet,  while  a  signal  system  invented  by  Admiral  Bruce 
was  installed  on  the  other  mast.  The  two  systems  were 
tried  in  competition,  and  mine  was  declared  to  be  the  bet 
ter.  For  a  long  while  my  system  worked  well ;  but  finally 
some  water  got  into  one  of  the  electric  solenoids  that 
moved  the  semaphore-arms,  and  the  apparatus  refused  to 
work.  A  board  of  officers  declared  in  favor  of  the  sys 
tem,  but  recommended  that  the  semaphore-arms  be  made 
to  work  by  hand  power  rather  than  by  electric.  Then 
Midshipman  Mustin  invented  an  ingenious  and  effective 
apparatus  for  hand  power,  which  was  installed  and 
worked  very  well.  This  was  the  situation  when  I  reached 
home.  So  I  proceeded  to  devise  a  hand-worked  appa 
ratus  which  should  be  a  little  more  satisfactory  than  that 
of  Mustin,  which  was  a  little  crude,  having  been  made 
largely  on  board  ship  and  with  insufficient  appliances. 
Then  I  persuaded  my  good  friend  Mr.  Thayer  to  attack 
the  problem  anew,  and  to  rig  up  a  semaphore  apparatus 
on  a  large  flagpole  on  the  roof  of  the  Western  Electric 
Building  on  West  Street.  I  had  the  assistance  of  one 
of  the  best  mechanics  I  have  ever  seen,  a  Mr.  George 
Atwood,  who  finally  became  more  enthusiastic  about  the 
semaphore  system  than  I  was. 


342     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

.When  the  apparatus  was  ready,  the  Western  Electric 
Company  asked  the  Navy  Department  to  appoint  a  board 
to  try  it.  A  board  was  appointed  at  once,  and  it  made 
a  careful  series  of  tests  of  the  system  as  installed  on  the 
roof,  testing  it,  in  comparison  with  signal-flags,  both  for 
rapidity  of  operation  and  for  the  distances  and  directions 
over  which  it  could  be  read.  The  trial  lasted  three  days, 
part  of  the  board  being  on  the  roof  of  the  building,  and 
the  rest  on  the  navy-yard  tug,  which  went  to  various 
positions  up  and  down  the  river  where  good  observations 
could  be  made.  The  report  of  the  board  was  wholly  fa 
vorable  to  the  semaphore  system,  and  substantiated  my 
claims  that  the  system  could  make  readable  signals  more 
rapidly  than  flags  could,  and  also  that  they  could  be  read 
equally  well  in  all  directions;  whereas  the  flag  system 
could  be  read  well  in  only  a  few  directions.  The  board, 
in  conclusion,  recommended  extended  trials  at  sea  on 
board  two  battle-ships  of  the  fleet;  so  that  those  two 
ships  could  signal  to  each  other.  In  accordance  with 
this  recommendation,  the  system  was  installed  in  the 
Kearsarge  and  Alabama.  It  was  operated  by  hand 
power. 

During  my  wife's  stay  in  China  and  Japan  she  had 
bought  many  beautiful  tapestries,  cabinets,  rugs,  pieces 
of  china,  silk,  and  silver,  but  she  had  not  bought  any  until 
she  had  had  the  experience  of  a  year 's  life  in  China  and 
Japan,  and  felt  competent  to  decide  what  was  good  and 
what  was  mediocre.  Most  of  her  purchases  were  made 
in  the  early  part  of  1898,  and  shipped  to  New  York  in  a 
sailing-ship  from  Hong-Kong.  After  her  return  to 
Hong-Kong  from  Manila  in  February,  1899,  she  went  to 
India,  Egypt,  and  Germany,  where  our  daughter  took  a 
course  in  the  violin.  She  reached  New  York  shortly  be 
fore  I  did,  and  purchased  a  house  just  nearing  comple 
tion  at  309  West  106th  Street.  The  goods  from  China 
and  Japan  had  already  arrived,  and  as  she  had  bought 
some  things  in  India  and  Egypt,  she  had  a  good  deal  with 
which  to  equip  a  house.  Certain  purchases  in  New  York 


SHORE  DUTY,  TORPEDOES,  SEMAPHORES     343 

were  added  to  those  made  abroad,  so  that  by  the  first  of 
May  we  were  able  to  move  into  a  beautiful  home. 

Naturally,  we  started  in  to  entertain  our  friends,  and 
the  first  thing  that  happened  to  us  in  this  beautiful  house, 
to  which  we  had  looked  forward  so  long,  was  that  we 
both  became  sick.  The  doctor  said  wre  had  been  giving 
too  many  dinner  parties,  and  that  we  should  have  to  mod 
erate  our  pace. 

We  gave  a  housewarming  shortly  after  moving  in,  and 
many  guests  did  us  the  honor  to  help  warm  the  house. 
We  had  a  large  punch-bowl  on  the  table  in  the  dining- 
room,  and  in  this  punch-bowl  we  put  some  punch  which  we 
had  made  on  the  receipt  of  our  old  friend,  Medical  Di 
rector  Bloodgood  of  the  navy.  Some  of  the  guests  be 
came  just  a  little  hilarious,  and  declared  that  the  punch, 
while  good,  was  exceedingly  strong;  but  we  said  no,  that 
it  was  a  regular  punch  and  not  especially  strong.  After 
the  guests  had  departed,  I  chanced  to  go  into  the  butler's 
pantry,  and  there  I  saw  forty-eight  unopened  bottles  of 
soda-water  that  the  servants  had  forgotten  to  put  into 
the  punch. 

One  afternoon,  some  years  before,  during  the  tests  of 
my  position-finder  at  Fort  Hamilton,  I  had  looked  through 
the  big  telescope  of  the  Lewis  Position-Finder  at  a  mer 
chant  ship  coming  up  the  bay,  and  it  occurred  to  me  that 
it  would  be  fine  to  have  large  telescopes  on  board  our 
ships  with  which  to  read  signals,  watch  the  operations  of 
an  enemy,  etc.  However,  I  realized  that  there  would 
have  to  be  some  inventing  done  to  make  such  a  thing 
quite  possible.  The  idea  did  not  fade  entirely  from  my 
mind,  however,  and  so  one  day  while  I  was  in  the  Petrel  I 
conceived  the  idea  of  pivoting  the  telescope  near  the  eye, 
instead  of  in  the  middle,  and  of  supporting  the  telescope 
by  a  counterweight.  I  made  a  drawing  and  description 
of  this  apparatus  and  submitted  it  to  the  Navy  Depart 
ment,  but  never  received  any  reply.  I  made  up  my  mind, 
however,  that  as  soon  as  I  got  home  I  would  construct 
an  apparatus  according  to  my  idea. 


344     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAE-ADMIEAL 


Naval  Telescope  and 
Mount. 


At  different  times  during  the  cruise  I  made  experi 
ments  with  crude  apparatus,  which  showed  me  that  the 
plan  was  sound  and  capable  of  development.  So  when  I 
got  home,  I  had  an  apparatus  made.  I  found  that  the 
counterweights  caused  considerable 
friction  and  inertia,  and  so  I  replaced 
them  with  a  spiral  spring.  I  met 
some  unexpected  difficulties,  but  was 
finally  able  to  produce  a  very  practi 
cal  and  convenient  apparatus. 

I  submitted  this  to  the  Navy  De 
partment,  and  received  permission  to 
put  it  on  board  the  battle-ship  Massa 
chusetts,  then  at  the  New  York  Navy- 
Yard.  The  captain  liked  the  ma 
chine  as  soon  as  he  saw  it,  and  got  the  navy-yard 
authorities  to  build  a  platform  for  it  above  the  bridge. 
The  Navy  Department  directed  that  it  be  given  a 
six  months'  test.  I  was  ordered  to  the  ship  myself  as 
executive  officer  shortly  after,  and  when  I  joined  the 
ship,  which  was  with  the  fleet  at  Cienfuegos,  Cuba,  I 
found  that  it  was  in  continual  use  and  very  much  liked. 
The  next  time  we  were  at  the  navy-yard,  the  prescribed 
test  of  six  months  having  been  completed,  the  captain  sent 
in  a  very  favorable  report.  By  return  mail  the  captain 
received  an  order  to  have  it  removed  from  the  ship,  and 
I  received  a  copy  of  the  order.  I  then  asked  the  captain 
to  let  me  take  it  out  of  the  ship,  and  put  it  on  the  wharf, 
so  as  to  obey  the  order;  but  to  let  me  take  it  back  again 
on  board  the  ship  as  my  personal  property  and  put  it  in 
place  again.  He  assented,  and  the  instrument  remained 
in  the  ship  till  she  went  out  of  commission,  being  bor 
rowed  occasionally  by  some  captain  or  the  admiral  for 
some  specific  purpose.  Then  it  was  put  ashore  in  the 
navy-yard  store-house.  Later,  when  Lieut.  W.  S.  Sims 
(later  Admiral  Sims),  then  director  of  target  prac 
tice,  was  developing  his  target-practice  system,  he  bor- 


SHORE  DUTY,  TORPEDOES,  SEMAPHORES     345 

rowed  it  for  spotting,  and  kept  it  for  some  time,  and  then 
returned  it  to  the  storehouse. 

In  1905  Admiral  Barker,  then  commander-in-chief  of 
the  North  Atlantic  Fleet,  wrote  me  a  letter,  asking  where 
he  could  get  a  telescope  and  mount  like  mine ;  and  I  told 
him  I  would  be  very  glad  to  loan  him  mine,  which  was 
the  only  one  in  existence.  Admiral  Barker  answered 
that  he  did  not  think  that  would  be  right ;  that  he  thought 
the  Navy  Department  ought  to  buy  it,  and  he  asked  me 
how  much  I  would  charge  for  it.  I  wrote  back  that  I 
would  sell  the  instrument  for  five  hundred  dollars, 
though  it  had  cost  me  a  little  more  than  fifteen  hundred. 
Then  Barker  had  the  instrument  bought,  and  put  into  his 
flag-ship. 

In  the  early  part  of  1907  the  Naval  Observatory  told 
me  unofficially  that  the  navy  officers  there  wanted  to  have 
the  instrument  introduced  into  the  navy,  and  said  they 
thought  the  best  way  was  to  have  a  competition  insti 
tuted  among  instrument-makers,  and  asked  me  if  I  would 
submit  my  instrument.  I  told  them  that  I  was  already 
out  of  pocket  more  than  a  thousand  dollars,  but  that  per 
haps  the  Western  Electric  Company  would.  I  then  wrote 
to  the  company,  suggesting  that  they  do  this  under  a  li 
cense  from  me,  and  they  consented.  They  made  a  beau 
tiful  instrument,  substantially  like  the  one  in  the  Massa 
chusetts,  and  when  the  competition  was  held,  it  was  the 
winner,  with  no  competitor  in  the  same  class.  Then  the 
Navy  Department  advertised  for  bids,  specifying  my  in 
strument  exactly.  Several  firms  bid,  all  underbidding 
the  Western  Electric  Company,  which  they  could  easily 
do,  as  they  had  no  previous  expenses  to  make  up  and  no 
royalty  to  pay.  The  Navy  Department  accepted  the  low 
est  bid,  made  by  a  New  York  firm. 

So  far  as  I  was  concerned,  therefore,  the  net  result  of 
the  operation  was  that  I  lost  a  little  more  than  a  thou 
sand,  and  that  the  large  ships  of  the  navy  were  supplied 
with  an  invention  which  I  had  made  and  developed  and 


346     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

for  which  I  had  obtained  a  broad  patent.  I  intended 
for  a  long  time  to  sue  the  inf ringer ;  but  I  figured  out  that 
the  cost  of  the  patent  suit  and  of  traveling  expenses  back 
and  forth,  and  the  amount  of  time  required  would  prob 
ably  be  so  great  as  not  to  make  it  worth  while. 

The  joke  is  on  me.  Not  only  did  I  lose  a  thousand 
dollars  and  do  a  lot  of  work,  but  I  did  not  even  receive 
any  credit,  because  most  of  the  people  in  the  navy  do  not 
even  know  that  I  invented  what  is  now  considered  a  very 
valuable  appliance.  I  understand  that  all  our  large 
ships  are  now  supplied  with  these  instruments,  and  that 
similar  ones  are  now  used  abroad. 

My  tour  of  shore  duty  being  completed,  I  left  in  the 
early  part  of  February  to  join  the  Massachusetts  at 
Cienfuegos.  I  stopped  in  Washington  on  the  way  down, 
and  called  on  Commodore  0  'Neill,  chief  of  the  Bureau  of 
Ordnance.  O'Neill  told  me  that  he  had  some  bad  news 
for  me ;  and  when  I  asked  him  what  it  was,  he  said  that 
he  was  going  to  withdraw  the  telescope-sight  from  the 
service.  I  asked  him  why,  and  he  replied  that  the  re 
ports  of  the  telescope-sight  from  the  ships  were  so  un 
satisfactory,  and  the  opinion  of  naval  officers  regarding  it 
was  so  unfavorable,  that  although  he  himself  believed  in 
the  sight,  he  had  decided  to  give  it  up.  I  told  him  that 
the  trouble  was  not  with  the  sight,  but  with  the  flimsy  way 
in  which  it  was  made,  and  with  the  faulty  construction 
of  the  telescopes  supplied  by  the  bureau.  I  told  him  that 
I  had  known  for  a  long  while  that  this  was  so,  because 
I  had  seen  the  apparatus  in  the  ships;  that  the  bureau 
had  never  allowed  me  to  have  anything  to  say  about  the 
construction  of  the  sights,  and  that  the  very  first  sight, 
which  I  had  tried  in  the  Yorktown,  was  better  than  any 
made  by  the  bureau  in  the  twelve  years  that  had  fol 
lowed.  Naturally,  O'Neill  did  not  agree  with  me,  and  I 
left  with  the  discouraging  knowledge  that  a  most  impor 
tant  invention  of  mine  was  on  the  point  of  being  dis 
carded;  and  that  if  it  was  discarded,  it  would  probably 
be  discarded  forever.  I  found  afterward  that  one  of  the 


SHORE  DUTY,  TORPEDOES,  SEMAPHORES     347 

officers  of  the  bureau,  Lieutenant  Strauss,  then  persuaded 
0  'Neill  to  let  the  sight  live  a  little  longer. 

Shortly  after  this,  Lieutenant  W.  S.  Sims  came  back 
from  a  cruise  in  China,  where  Captain  Sir  Percy  Scott, 
R.  N.,  had  made  some  unprecedented  target  practice, 
using  some  telescope-sights  that  he  had  had  made  him 
self.  Sims  came  back  full  of  energy  and  enthusiasm 
about  the  telescope-sight,  and  its  possibilities  with  a 
proper  system  of  training. 

Realizing  the  inertia  of  the  department,  and  the 
straightforward  character  of  President  Roosevelt,  Sims 
wrote  to  him  direct,  which  was  a  most  improper  proceed 
ing  from  the  point  of  view  of  officialdom.  Mr.  Roosevelt 
took  up  the  matter  at  once  and  with  his  accustomed  force. 
Backed  by  this,  Sims  was  able  to  bring  about  an  actual 
revolution  in  our  methods  of  target  practice,  and  in  the 
matters  of  the  construction  of  ordnance  apparatus  as  ap 
plied  to  naval  gunnery.  Among  other  things,  he  brought 
it  about  that  some  strongly  constructed  telescope-sights 
were  made,  and  that  target  practice  was  held  with  them. 
These  trials  demonstrated  the  truth  of  what  I  had  told 
O'Neill,  and  brought  about  almost  instantly  the  rehabili 
tation  of  the  telescope-sight  in  the  minds  of  naval  men. 

The  action  of  Sims  precipitated  a  crisis  for  the  tele 
scope-sight,  which  it  passed  successfully.  After  that  the 
telescope-sight  was  taken  up  at  once  all  over  the  world. 
Too  much  credit  cannot  be  given  to  Sims  for  this,  and 
neither  can  too  much  credit  be  given  to  President  Roose 
velt,  who  took  his  duties  as  commander-in-chief  of  the 
army  and  navy  more  conscientiously  than  any  other  Pres 
ident  except  George  "Washington. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

EXECUTIVE   OFFICER   OF    A   BATTLE-SHIP 

I  FOUND  the  duties  of  executive  officer  of  a  battle 
ship  as  arduous  as  they  were  supposed  to  be.  The 
executive  officer  of  a  large  ship  is  on  duty  all  the  time, 
and  is,  virtually  speaking,  the  captain  of  the  inside  of 
the  ship  in  all  its  details  of  personnel  and  material.  The 
duties  are  mainly  of  routine  character,  but  they  extend 
from  midnight  of  one  night  till  midnight  of  the  next  night, 
and  then  start  in  again.  As  this  was  the  only  duty  I 
ever  had  on  which  T  gained  in  weight,  T  fancy  the  duties 
did  not  seem  so  serious  to  me  as  they  did  to  some  others, 
though  I  found  them  sufficiently  serious,  nevertheless. 
Fortunately,  I  was  able  to  get  through  with  them  with 
out  loss  of  sleep  or  appetite  and  without  having  quarrels, 
and  I  often  thanked  my  father  for  having  given  me  a  dis 
position  by  heredity  which  did  not  let  me  be  downcast  for 
more  than  a  few  minutes  at  a  time. 

The  commander-in-chief  was  Eear- Admiral  Higginson. 
We  were  often  disposed  to  growl  at  the  number  and  char 
acter  of  drills  we  had  and  at  the  sudden  changes  in  rou 
tine  ;  yet  we  realized  that  it  was  not  altogether  his  fault, 
because  he  was  simply  carrying  out  the  orders  of  the 
Navy  Department. 

As  illustrating  these  sudden  changes,  I  recall  one  morn 
ing  the  following  summer,  when  the  fleet  was  anchored 
near  Martha's  Vineyard,  and  the  Dolphin,  with  the  secre 
tary  of  the  navy  on  board,  anchored  near  us.  It  was 
Saturday  morning,  the  day  for  scrubbing  decks  and 
everything  else;  but  we  knew  when  the  Dolphin  arrived 
that  we  should  probably  have  to  get  under  way  and  go 
through  some  tactical  drills ;  so  all  the  ships  had  steam 

348 


EXECUTIVE  OFFICER  OF  A  BATTLE-SHIP     349 

up.  About  nine  o'clock,  however,  we  were  reassured  by 
a  signal  from  the  Dolphin  that  the  fleet  would  not  get 
under  way  that  day.  So  we  got  hard  to  work  at  the 
Saturday  job  of  scrubbing  decks.  About  half  past  nine 
the  captains  went  on  board  the  Dolphin,  and  at  ten  min 
utes  of  ten  the  signal  went  up  from  the  Dolphin,  "Fleet 
will  get  under  way  at  ten  o'clock" !  In  two  minutes  long 
lines  of  naked  and  half-naked  men  were  hoisting  boats 
and  rigging  in  davits,  getting  in  gangways,  and  bringing 
to  the  chain;  and  at  ten  o'clock  exactly,  when  the  sig 
nal  was  hauled  down,  the  Massachusetts  got  under  way 
with  the  other  battle-ships  of  the  fleet. 

We  went  from  Cienfuegos  to  Aspinwall,  now  called 
Colon,  which  I  found  much  changed  and  sobered  from 
the  time  of  my  last  visit.  Colon  was  a  dull  place  now; 
in  fact,  depressing.  The  warm,  moist  climate  and  the 
prevalence  of  fevers  of  different  kinds  were  the  cause. 
I  remember  seeing  two  little  boys  trying  to  play  one 
afternoon;  their  intentions  were  good,  but  they  did  not 
have  enough  energy  to  play. 

From  Colon  we  went  to  Culebra,  just  east  of  the  island 
of  San  Domingo  and  west  of  St.  Thomas,  a  place  having 
great  natural  advantages  as  a  naval  base.  On  the  way 
from  Cienfuegos  to  Colon  and  north  again  the  admiral 
exercised  us  a  great  deal  at  what  were  called  "fleet  tac 
tics,"  but  which  were  not  really  fleet  tactics  at  all,  but 
only  tactical  drills.  The  ships  of  the  fleets,  for  instance, 
being  in  column,  one  behind  the  other,  the  admiral  would 
make  a  signal,  ' '  Head  of  column  right. ' '  When  the  sig 
nal  was  hauled  down,  the  leading  ship  would  turn  to  the 
right  and  be  followed  in  succession  by  the  others.  It  may 
not  seem  to  a  layman  that  there  was  any  particular  rea 
son  for  drilling  at  such  a  simple  maneuver  as  this,  or 
even  at  some  of  the  other  maneuvers,  where  the  column 
would  countermarch  or  go  from  column  into  line  abreast 
or  change  from  one  formation  to  another;  but  anybody 
who  has  taken  part  in,  or  even  seen,  a  tactical  drill  will 
realize  the  necessity  for  a  great  deal  of  drill  in  moving 


350     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

those  enormous  masses  with  the  precision  required  and 
as  close  together  as  they  must  be  in  order  to  concentrate 
their  gun-fire  on  an  enemy.  These  maneuvers,  however, 
did  not  constitute  fleet  tactics  any  more  than  similar 
maneuvers  of  infantry  regiments  or  companies  consti 
tute  infantry  tactics.  Tactics  is  the  handling  of  large 
warlike  bodies,  and  carries  with  it  the  idea  of  handling 
them  in  such  a  way  as  to  bring  them  effectively  to  bear 
against  an  enemy.  A  tactical  drill  is  merely  a  drill  in 
tended  to  insure  the  correct  carrying  into  execution  of 
some  plan  of  tactics.  The  tactical  drills  in  which  the 
father  of  Frederick  the  Great  drilled  the  Prussian  Army 
brought  the  army  to  such  a  condition  of  skill  in  tactical 
maneuvers  that  it  became  an  all-powerful  weapon  for 
carrying  out  the  tactics  of  Frederick  the  Great. 

While  we  were  at  Culebra,  however,  our  tactical  drills 
were  displaced  by  fleet  tactics  when  the  Dolphin  arrived 
there,  carrying  the  four-starred  flag  of  Admiral  Dewey, 
who  came  to  drill  the  fleet  at  fleet  tactics,  with  Rear- 
Admiral  Henry  C.  Taylor  as  his  chief  of  staff.  Fortu 
nately  for  the  navy,  Taylor  had  been  made  chief  of  the 
Bureau  of  Navigation,  and  had  already  formed  what 
was  a  very,  very  mild  kind  of  general  staff  by  securing 
the  establishment  of  the  General  Board,  with  Admiral 
Dewey  at  its  head,  and  persuading  Admiral  Dewey  to 
take  personal  charge  of  the  fleet  tactics  of  the  Atlantic 
Fleet,  first  at  Culebra  and  afterward  near  Narragansett 
Bay.  Taylor  had  also  ordered  to  the  tactical  drills  the 
battle-ships  in  Europe,  under  the  command  of  Rear-Ad 
miral  Crowninshield.  After  the  tactical  drills  were 
ended  that  winter,  a  strenuous  effort  was  made  to  let 
Crowninshield 's  ships  go  back  to  the  comfortable  Euro 
pean  cruising  that  had  formerly  been  carried  on;  but 
Taylor  was  strong  enough  to  prevent  it.  This  was  a 
more  important  victory  for  the  navy  than  many  appre 
ciated  then,  or  than  some  appreciate  even  now.  It  com 
mitted  the  navy  to  the  policy  of  organized  effectiveness, 
and  set  the  official  seal  of  disapproval  on  the  idea  of  di- 


EXECUTIVE  OFFICES  OF  A  BATTLE-SHIP     351 

vision  of  force  so  firmly  that  our  fleet  has  ever  since  been 
kept  together,  though  it  has  had  several  very  narrow 
escapes  from  being  divided  on  several  occasions  when 
political  influences  have  tried  to  have  it  divided. 

From  Culebra  the  ships  of  the  fleet  went  to  New  York 
for  a  brief  stay  at  the  navy-yard  in  order  to  get  ready 
for  the  summer's  drills,  which  were  to  be  held  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Narragansett  Bay.  My  recollection  of 
the  summer  that  ensued  is  like  the  recollection  of  a  merry- 
go-round.  I  was  never  so  busy  before  or  since,  and  I 
hope  I  shall  never  be  so  busy  again.  The  little  episode 
I  just  spoke  of  in  the  matter  of  the  fleet  getting  under 
way  when  the  Dolphin  arrived  was  characteristic  of 
every  day,  and  almost  of  every  night,  that  summer.  It 
was  impossible  for  anybody  to  make  any  plans  or  to  sit 
down  and  think  about  anything,  because,  if  he  did,  he 
would  be  left  behind  by  the  procession.  Everybody  was 
kept  running  all  the  time,  and  everybody  was  out  of 
breath.  My  four-arm  semaphore  on  the  mainmast  of  the 
Kearsarge  was  kept  working  at  frequent  intervals  dur 
ing  the  day,  and  found  to  be  very  valuable  for  sending 
messages  to  the  ships  both  when  at  anchor  and  when 
under  way. 

One  of  the  factors  that  made  the  life  so  strenuous  was 
that,  in  addition  to  the  regular  drills  and  exercises  of 
various  kinds,  the  Navy  Department  had  plunged  deep 
into  a  system  of  education  of  the  enlisted  men.  The  idea 
had  been  conceived  that  the  better  educated  a  man  was, 
the  better  he  would  do  anything,  a  principle  good,  of 
course,  as  a  general  principle,  but,  like  all  general  prin 
ciples,  dangerous  to  apply  thoughtlessly  to  special  cases. 
Many  of  the  more  conservative  officers  in  the  navy,  of 
whom  I  was  one,  pointed  out  that  Admiral  Luce  had  gone 
into  the  subject  of  the  education  of  the  enlisted  men  dur 
ing  thirty  years,  and  had  finally  committed  the  navy  to  a 
system  of  training  so  comprehensive  and  large  that  the 
ships  and  officers  and  men  engaged  in  training  the  appren 
tices  had  become  an  unduly  large  fraction  of  the  whole 


352     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

navy ;  and  yet  that  even  Admiral  Luce  had  never  carried 
out,  or  even  proposed,  going  to  such  an  extreme  as  the 
navy  was  going  to  then.  By  the  plan  then  being  carried 
out,  officers  of  divisions  in  each  ship  would  take  their 
men,  many  of  whom  could  hardly  read  and  write,  all  over 
the  ship,  and  try  to  make  them  understand  the  theory 
and  practice  of  the  wireless  telegraph,  the  theory  and 
practice  of  the  steam-engine,  the  science  and  the  art  of 
naval  construction,  the  fabrication  of  high-power  steel 
guns,  the  laws  of  explosives,  the  construction  of  tor 
pedoes,  etc.;  in  fact,  make  them  understand  the  theory 
and  practice  of  all  the  arts  represented  in  the  ship.  The 
poor  devils  could  not  possibly  digest  such  an  enormous 
amount  of  mental  food,  and  the  system  was  soon  aban 
doned.  Lieutenant  Sims,  with  his  clear  head  and  conse 
quent  faculty  of  clear  expression,  did  more  than  any  other 
one  man  to  break  it  down,  pointing  out  that  what  the 
Government  wanted  of  every  man  was  simply  to  do  well 
the  work  which  he  was  engaged  to  do ;  just  as  a  base-ball 
club  did  of  the  various  players  on  the  nine.  Sims  then 
pointed  out  that  there  was  not  a  base-ball  team  in  the 
country  that  sought  to  educate  its  base-ball  nine  in  read 
ing,  writing,  and  arithmetic  or  in  any  of  the  arts  and 
sciences. 

We  did  not  know  until  afterward  that  a  prime  reason 
for  Admiral  Dewey's  being  there  was  that  President 
Roosevelt  had  sent  him  to  take  command  of  the  fleet  in 
case  Germany  should  refuse  to  do  what  she  ought  to  do 
in  a  certain  matter,  what  President  Roosevelt  wished  her 
to  do,  and  what  she  eventually  did  do. 

When  we  went  south  in  the  following  autumn  we  went 
to  Culebra,  to  prepare  for  fleet  target  practice,  which 
was  to  be  held  later  at  Pensacola,  and  was  intended  to 
try  out  the  scheme  which  Sir  Percy  Scott  had  found  suc 
cessful  in  his  ship  the  Terrible,  and  which  Sims  had  in 
duced  the  Navy  Department  to  take  up,  the  said  "induc 
ing"  being  what  was  virtually  an  order  from  President 
Roosevelt.  In  training  for  this  target  practice,  small 


EXECUTIVE  OFFICER  OF  A  BATTLE-SHIP     353 

moving  targets  were  dangled  in  front  of  the  telescope- 
sights,  and  moved  up  and  down  and  sidewise,  by  appro 
priate  means,  so  as  to  simulate  moving  targets,  and  to 
offer  the  same  problem  for  hitting  them  as  was  offered 
actually  by  stationary  targets  to  the  gun-pointers  on 
board  moving  ships.  For  some  reason  we  called  this 
practice  "Morris  Tube"  practice.  I  have  never  been 
able  to  ascertain  who  Morris  was,  and  there  was  no  tube 
used  in  the  practice. 

In  1894,  when  I  was  in  the  San  Francisco  at  Bluefields, 
I  proposed  a  system  identical  with  this  to  Captain  Wat 
son,  and  received  his  authority  to  rig  it  up  for  trial  on 
the  port  after  gun  on  the  quarter-deck.  I  started  to  make 
the  simple  apparatus  required,  but  shortly  after  that  the 
ship  was  ordered  home,  and  other  interests  and  duties 
took  up  my  time. 

One  morning  when  we  were  having  stationary  target 
practice  at  Culebra  and  I  was  standing  on  the  fore-and- 
aft  bridge,  supervising  the  target  practice,  I  saw  a  great 
cloud  of  white  smoke  come  out  of  the  starboard  after 
8-inch  turret;  then  I  saw  some  men  fall  out  of  the 
ports  in  the  rear  of  the  turret,  followed  by  some 
others  who  were  on  fire,  one  of  whom  jumped  overboard. 
I  sent  the  ship  to  fire-quarters  immediately,  had  the 
burned  men  taken  to  the  ship's  hospital,  and  despatched 
a  steam  launch  to  pick  up  the  man  who  had  jumped  over 
board.  I  realized,  of  course,  that  a  serious  accident  had 
taken  place.  I  tried  to  get  into  the  turret,  as  did  also 
Lieutenant  Cole;  but  the  smoke  was  so  dense  and  suffo 
cating  that  we  could  not  get  in.  It  finally  cleared  away, 
however,  and  Lieutenant  Cole  went  in.  He  reported  to 
me  that  there  was  nobody  in  the  turret. 

We  got  orders  from  the  admiral  to  go  to  San  Juan, 
Porto  Eico,  and  land  the  burned  men  at  the  hospital; 
and  we  started  at  once.  That  afternoon,  on  the  way  up, 
a  curious  smell  of  something  burning  pervaded  the  deck, 
and  was  reported  to  me  by  the  officer  of  the  deck.  I  went 
up  on  the  superstructure-deck,  where  a  large  number  of 


354     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

men  were  now  collected.  Soon  the  smell  was  traced  to  a 
large  ventilator,  the  mouth  of  which  was  about  eight  feet 
above  the  deck,  and  which  went  down  to  a  grating  about 
twenty-five  feet  below,  on  the  roof  of  the  fire-room,  where 
the  furnaces  were.  I  climbed  up  to  the  mouth  of  the  ven 
tilator,  but  could  see  nothing ;  but  there  was  a  light  smoke 
and  a  very  disagreeable  smell  coming  up.  So  I  tied  a 
rope  around  my  waist  and  had  the  men  lower  me  down 
the  ventilator.  When  I  got  to  the  bottom,  I  found  some 
smoldering  pieces  of  what  looked  like  oil-cloth.  I  had 
just  begun  stamping  out  the  embers  when  suddenly  a 
current  of  air  came  from  below,  which  instantly  supplied 
enough  oxygen  to  start  the  blaze  and  the  smoke  again.  I 
realized  that  somebody  must  have  started  a  blower  in  the 
engine-room,  and  that  I  was  in  great  danger.  So  I  pulled 
on  the  rope,  and  in  a  few  seconds  I  was  yanked  out  of  the 
ventilator  at  a  bewildering  speed,  and  landed  on  the  deck 
in  a  very  undignified  way.  A  few  buckets  of  water  put 
the  fire  out  easily.  When  I  reported  the  circumstance  to 
the  captain,  his  only  comment  was  that  I  had  been  ' '  very 
foolish." 

We  transferred  the  burned  men  to  the  hospital,  where 
several  of  them  died.  I  remember  that  the  diagnosis  of 
the  doctors  at  the  hospital  was  favorable  in  the  case  of 
men  who  suffered  a  great  deal  of  pain,  and  unfavorable 
in  the  case  of  men  who  did  not. 

As  executive  officer  of  the  ship,  I  was  in  charge  of  all 
funerals.  One  forenoon,  while  the  services  were  being 
conducted  over  the  bodies  of  two  of  the  men  in  a  large 
inclosure,  where  I  had  about  two  hundred  sailors  drawn 
up  in  infantry  formation,  I  was  horrified  to  hear  the 
Porto  Rican  band,  which  was  there  to  play  appropriate 
music,  start  a  waltz.  I  did  not  like  to  interrupt  the  pro 
ceedings,  thinking  it  would  do  more  harm  than  good ;  and 
I  was  glad  afterward  that  I  had  not,  because  after  a  min 
ute  or  two  I  realized  that  the  band  was  playing  '  *  Nearer, 
My  God,  to  Thee,"  though  too  fast. 

We  went  to  Pensacola,  and  held  our  target  practice 


EXECUTIVE  OFFICER  OF  A  BATTLE-SHIP     355 

there,  on  target  waters  just  outside  of  Pensacola  Bay, 
where  Sims  had  had  a  number  of  his  new  kind  of  targets 
anchored.  Our  preparations  for  target  practice  were 
somewhat  delayed  by  the  delightful  hospitality  of  the 
people  on  shore  and  by  their  charming  efforts  to  make  us 
like  Pensacola.  In  cases  such  as  this  it  is  absolutely 
necessary  to  adopt  one  of  two  courses,  either  to  refrain 
from  social  distractions  altogether  or  else  to  go  into 
them  liberally.  I  have  never  known  any  intermediate 
course  to  succeed.  In  our  case,  we  were  taken  by  sur 
prise.  If  the  admiral  had  known  the  scale  on  which  the 
entertainments  had  been  laid  out,  he  might  have  been 
able  to  arrange  some  plan ;  but  as  it  was,  having  accepted 
two  or  three  invitations  at  the  start,  he  was  almost 
obliged  to  go  through  the  whole  program.  As  a  fact,  no 
ill  result  seemed  to  follow,  although  the  target  practice 
was  somewhat  delayed ;  because,  when  the  target  practice 
was  finally  carried  out,  it  was  so  successful  in  every  way 
as  to  be  the  best  target  practice  the  navy  had  ever  held, 
and  to  justify  all  the  claims  that  Sims  has  made.  It  was, 
in  fact,  the  basis  of  all  target  practices  held  by  our  navy 
since  that  time. 

An  essential  part  of  the  new  target  practice  was  "spot 
ting,"  a  procedure  by  which  officers  aloft  noted  how  far 
the  projectiles  fell  short  of  the  target  or  beyond  it,  and 
estimated  by  various  means  how  much  the  range  at  which 
those  projectiles  were  fired  should  be  increased  or  de 
creased.  Sims  had  learned  the  method  from  Captain  Sir 
Percy  Scott  on  board  the  Terrible,  in  Asia ;  but  of  course 
" spotting"  was  exactly  what  I  had  done  at  the  Battle  of 
Manila,  several  years  before  Scott,  when  I  stationed  my 
self  aloft  with  my  stadimeter  and  " spotted"  the  Petrel's 
projectiles. 

Realizing  that  my  act  at  Manila  was  really  epochal,  in 
that  it  initiated  a  new  epoch  in  naval  gunnery,  it  is  inter 
esting  to  remember  that  I  had  considerable  difficulty  in 
persuading  the  captain  of  the  Petrel  to  let  me  undertake 
what  he  considered  an  unduly  hazardous  performance,  in 


356     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

a  position  aloft,  where,  as  he  smilingly  expressed  it,  the 
"gravimetric  density"  due  to  enemy's  projectiles  would 
be  too  great.  The  night  before  the  battle  I  overheard 
some  sailors  talking  about  the  project.  One  of  them 
seemed  to  express  the  opinion  of  the  party  present  when 
he  said,  "We  '11  see  old  Fiske  coming  down  out  of  that 
perch  like  the  devil  was  after  him." 

During  the  latter  part  of  my  stay  in  the  Massachusetts 
I  devised  what  seemed  to  me  a  very  considerable  improve 
ment  over  the  "Morris  Tube,"  a  sighting-machine  that 
was  really  a  machine  instead  of  a  crude  apparatus,  and 
so  designed  that  it  could  be  standardized,  and  identical 
instruments  supplied  to  all  ships.  It  also  provided  for 
recording  on  a  blank  form,  reduced  to  scale,  the  hits 
made.  This  gave  a  mathematically  correct  means  for 
gaging  any  man's  skill,  for  determining  his  rate  of  im 
provement,  and  for  comparing  the  skill  of  men  even  in 
different  ships.  I  had  a  crude  instrument  made  on 
board,  which  I  showed  to  many  officers,  including  Sims. 

After  I  left  the  ship,  the  Western  Electric  Company 
had  an  instrument  made  for  me,  which,  though  far  from 
perfect,  was  a  distinct  step  in  advance ;  and  they  patented 
the  instrument  in  my  name.  We  did  not  get  any  encour 
agement  from  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance,  however,  and  I 
took  up  another  line  of  work  that  seemed  more  promising. 
Some  time  in  the  winter  of  1906-07,  Lieutenant  M— 
said  to  me  that  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  had  ordered  him 
to  take  up  my  sighting-machine  seriously  and  make  an 
apparatus  for  trial  in  service.  I  was  unable  afterward 
to  hear  what  progress  was  made;  but  in  the  spring  of 
1908  Commander  McKean  showed  me  blue  prints  of 

a  ".  .  .    dotter,"  named  after  Lieutenant  M ,  which 

was  being  put  in  to  the  ships.  I  saw  that  the  "dotter" 
was  identical  with  my  "sighting-machine,"  except  that 
the  best  part  had  been  omitted.  I  protested  to  the  bu 
reau  that  this  was  my  invention  with  the  best  part  left 
out,  and  that  the  apparatus,  as  made,  could  not  possibly 
be  good.  The  bureau  suppressed  the  name  of  M , 


EXECUTIVE  OFFICEE  OF  A  BATTLE-SHIP     357 

and  not  long  afterward  withdrew  the  machine  from  serv 
ice.  Too  bad;  it  was  a  very  good  scheme,  and  could 
easily  have  been  made  a  splendid  machine  for  training 
gun-pointers. 

Before  the  target  practice  was  held,  my  promotion  to 
the  grade  of  commander  became  due.  In  those  days  the 
change  from  lieutenant-commander  to  commander  was 
the  greatest  change  that  took  place  in  an  officer's  career 
— greater  even  than  the  change  from  captain  to  rear-ad 
miral;  because  it  removed  an  officer  altogether  from  the 
class  of  subordinate  officers,  where  he  had  little  personal 
responsibility,  to  the  status  of  "command  rank."  Natu 
rally,  I  was  eager  to  become  a  commander,  to  give  up  my 
very  exacting,  but  subordinate,  duties  as  executive  officer, 
and  to  assume  those  responsible  duties  which  the  ripe 
age  of  forty-nine  seemed  to  indicate  as  proper ;  but  I  was 
so  intensely  interested  in  the  approaching  target  prac 
tice  that  I  asked  to  be  kept  as  executive  officer  until  after 
it  had  been  completed,  and  to  have  my  examination  post 
poned. 

My  request  was  granted;  and  I  have  been  glad  ever 
since  that  I  was  able  to  take  part  in  the  first  modern 
target  practice  our  fleet  had  ever  held ;  and  to  remember 
also  that  I  had  taken  part,  when  in  the  San  Francisco  in 
1894,  in  the  first  modern  target  practice  that  any  single 
United  States  ship  had  ever  held. 

I  was  detached  from  the  Massachusetts  in  Boston  in 
the  early  part  of  May,  1903,  and  I  walked  from  the 
gangway  of  the  ship  to  the  shore,  realizing  that  I  had  left 
the  life  of  a  subordinate  officer  behind  me  forever. 


CHAPTER  XXV 

TUEEET    BANGE-FINDEE,    FOUB-ABM    SEMAPHOEE,    PEIZE    ESSAY 
AND    NAVAL   STEATEGY 

SHORTLY  after  arriving  home,  I  was  ordered  for  ex 
amination  for  promotion  to  the  grade  of  commander. 
My  previous  examination,  for  promotion  to  the  grade 
of  lieutenant-commander,  had  been  made  in  Manila  four 
years  previous,  and  had  been  a  physical  examination 
only,  because  the  phraseology  of  the  act  of  Congress  in 
creasing  the  navy,  passed  a  few  months  after  the  Battle 
of  Manila,  was  such  that  no  other  examination  was  re 
quired.  On  my  examination  in  Manila  the  doctors  laid 
little  stress  on  any  abnormal  sounds  they  heard  from  the 
heart.  In  fact,  one  of  the  doctors  said  there  were  no 
abnormal  sounds,  and  that  the  heart  was  all  right.  This 
was  a  considerable  surprise  to  me,  because  I  had  always 
supposed  that,  if  a  man  had  organic  heart  disease,  his 
heart  would  get  progressively  worse,  while  mine  seemed 
to  be  getting  progressively  better  since  my  examination 
for  master  in  1882.  On  my  examination  for  commander, 
one  of  the  doctors  on  the  board  was  one  who  had  been  on 
the  board  also  four  years  before  in  Manila.  This  doctor 
insisted  that  he  did  hear  abnormal  sounds  from  the  heart, 
but  the  other  doctors  said  they  did  not.  So  I  was  passed, 
and  not  only  physically,  but  professionally,  and  in  other 
ways  besides. 

During  my  cruise  in  the  Massachusetts  I  had  become 
impressed  with  the  idea  that  the  navy  was  laying  too 
much  stress  on  spotting  and  not  enough  on  range-finding. 
During  the  latter  part  of  my  stay  on  shore,  before  I  went 
to  the  Massachusetts,  I  had  had  constructed  and  installed 
on  board  the  Cincinnati  an  apparatus  in  which  the  two  ob- 

358 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  359 

serving-stations  at  the  ends  of  the  ship  were  in  little  sta 
tionary  turrets,  and  in  which  my  regular  "Wheatstone- 
bridge"  apparatus  was  supplemented  by  a  very  simple 
arrangement  of  telephones,  with  a  sort  of  sliding-rule, 
which  formed  a  range-finder  system  of  itself.  In  other 
words,  I  installed  two  separate  range-finders  in  the  Cin 
cinnati,  with  the  idea  of  finding  out  which  of  the  two  was 
the  better.  At  the  same  time  the  Cincinnati  received  a 
Barr  &  Stroud  Range-finder,  which  was  an  optical  instru 
ment  needing  only  one  observer,  and  much  simpler  than 
mine.  When  the  report  of  the  Cincinnati  came  in,  after 
several  months,  it  declared  in  effect  that  the  Barr  & 
Stroud  Range-finder  was  so  much  the  best  of  the  three 
that  it  was  the  only  one  worth  considering. 

I  agreed  with  this  report,  and  said  so  to  everybody. 
I  realized,  however,  that  there  were  many  conditions  of 
the  atmosphere  when  my  electric  range-finder  could  be 
used,  and  the  other  could  not ;  for  the  reason  that,  if  the 
atmosphere  was  misty  or  the  light  was  poor,  observations 
could  not  be  made  at  all  with  the  Barr  &  Stroud,  because 
the  numerous  reflections  and  refractions  in  it  caused  great 
loss  of  light;  while  my  range-finder  could  be  used  per 
fectly  well.  I  determined  to  hold  this  in  reserve  for  a 
while,  however,  and  to  bring  my  range-finder  forward 
again,  after  the  navy  should  have  come  to  realize  the  limi 
tations  of  the  Barr  &  Stroud.  During  the  last  few  years 
many  officers  have  asked  me  to  have  my  range-finder 
tried  again ;  but  the  limitations  of  being  able  to  work  only 
twelve  hours  a  day,  and  the  opposing  claims  of  other 
duties,  have  blocked  the  way. 

The  adoption  of  the  Barr  &  Stroud  Range-finder,  how 
ever,  by  our  navy,  the  comparative  ease  with  which  a  man 
learned  to  use  it,  and  its  accuracy,  indicated  to  me  that 
the  range-finder  should  be  the  basis  of  our  target-prac 
tice  and  gunnery-training  system,  and  that  spotting 
should  be  made  auxiliary  to  it.  I  was  able  to  get  very 
few  officers  to  agree  with  me.  It  was  insisted  that  the 
range-finder  was  inaccurate,  and  instances  of  inaccurate 


360     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

measurements  were  cited;  and  when  I  answered  that 
those  inaccurate  measurements  could  largely  be  pre 
vented  by  training  men  more  carefully  to  use  range-find 
ers,  and  by  making  range-finders  with  a  longer  base-line, 
I  could  make  no  headway  whatever.  Sims  had  the  navy 
committed  to  a  "fire-control  system"  that  relied  almost 
wholly  upon  spotting,  and  the  range-finder,  while  not  re 
jected  altogether,  was  not  seriously  regarded. 

I  had  also  become  impressed  some  years  before  with 
the  extreme  vulnerability  of  all  range-finders  on  board 
ship,  the  shortness  of  the  base-line  they  used,  and  the 
difficulty  of  getting  good  communication  between  the 
range-finders  and  the  gun-pointers  inside  the  turrets 
whereby  the  latter  could  learn  the  indications  of  the 
range-finders.  While  pondering  over  this  matter  one 
day,  the  idea  occurred  to  me  that  all  these  troubles  could 
be  obviated  by  so  combining  and  constructing  a  turret 
and  a  one-observer  range-finder  that  the  two  would  oper 
ate  together,  the  range-finder  being  inside  the  turret, 
with  only  its  two  object-glasses  exposed,  and  being  turned 
toward  the  target  by  the  same  revolution  of  the  turret 
that  brought  its  guns  to  bear  on  the  target,  the  full  diame 
ter  of  the  turret  being  available  as  a  base-line. 

On  June  28,  1900,  I  applied  for  a  patent  on  a  "com 
bined  range-finder  and  turret."  I  did  not  have  any 
serious  trouble  with  the  Patent  Office,  and  a  broad  patent 
was  finally  issued  bearing  the  date  November  20,  1900. 
The  first  claim  of  this  patent  read  as  follows : 

"The  combination  with  a  revolving  turret  of  an  optical  range 
finder  carried  thereon  and  constituting  a  permanent  fixture 
thereof,  whereby  the  range  finder  will  be  trained  on  the  target 
by  the  rotation  of  the  turret;  said  range  finder  comprising  a  tel 
escope  and  two  reflectors ;  said  reflectors  being  secured  at  approx 
imately  the  opposite  ends  of  a  diameter  of  the  turret,  which 
diameter  thereby  constitutes  the  base  line  of  the  finder;  and 
means  for  vertically  aligning  the  rays  which  come  from  a  dis 
tant  object  to  said  opposite  ends  of  the  base  line,  substantially  as 
set  forth." 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  361 

In  the  specification  of  my  patent  application  I  was 
careful  to  point  out  that  my  invention  was  not  restricted 
to  using  any  special  kind  of  range-finder,  and  I  showed 
two -diagrams  that  illustrated  the  two  principal  kinds  of 
optical  range-finders,  in  one  of  which  classes  the  Barr  & 
Stroud  Range-Finder  belonged. 

Shortly  after  arriving  home,  I  went  to  Washington  to 
suggest  to  Commodore  O'Neill,  chief  of  the  Bureau  of 
Ordnance,  the  advisability  of  taking  up  the  development 
of  my  turret  range-finder.  I  showed  him  my  patent, 
pointed  out  the  advantages  that  my  scheme  seemed  to 
offer,  suggested  that  he  have  me  put  on  the  duty  of  de 
veloping  it  into  a  practical  instrument,  and  added  that 
I  was  perfectly  willing  to  make  a  present  of  my  patent 
to  the  bureau.  To  my  great  surprise,  O'Neill  would  not 
consider  the  scheme  seriously.  He  said  a  range-finder 
was  too  delicate  a  thing  to  stand  being  mounted  on  a 
turret,  because  the  concussion  of  the  guns  would  disable 
it,  or  at  least  throw  it  out  of  adjustment.  Arguments 
were  of  no  avail.  0  'Neill  would  have  nothing  whatever 
to  do  with  a  project  that  in  his  opinion  he  frankly  de 
clared  to  be  wholly  impracticable.  He  would  not  even 
ask  the  department  to  let  me  stay  on  "waiting  orders" 
for  a  while  in  order  to  develop  it  at  my  own  expense. 

On  my  way  back  to  New  York  I  determined  to  develop 
it  myself,  or  at  least  start  to  do  so,  and  to  seize  whatever 
opportunities  I  might  get  later.  Hardly  had  I  started, 
when  I  got  orders  to  attend  the  summer  course  at  the 
war  college.  I  succeeded  in  getting  two  weeks'  delay, 
and  in  this  time  I  completed  my  design  and  got  the  West 
ern  Electric  Company  to  start  some  mechanics  on  mak 
ing  the  instrument.  The  instrument  was  completed  in 
the  autumn,  and  I  received  the  permission  of  the  Bureau 
of  Ordnance  to  secure  it  in  position  on  top  of  a  turret  in 
the  battle-ship  Maine  (the  second  Maine),  and  to  have  its 
ability  to  withstand  the  concussion  of  gun-fire  tested  at 
the  next  target  practice. 

When  the  annual  class  of  the  war  college  was  formed 


362     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

in  the  summer  of  1903,  I  was  one  of  the  members  of  the 
class.  The  president  of  the  college  then  was  Captain 
F.  E.  Chadwick,  who  had  been  Sampson's  chief  of  staff 
during  the  Spanish  War. 

One  forenoon  during  the  course  Admiral  Luce  made 
an  informal  address  that  gave  me  the  first  clear  idea  I 
had  ever  had  about  war  and  the  way  it  is  carried  on. 
Before  hearing  Luce  talk  that  bright  summer  morning, 
I  had  had  a  vague  idea  that  a  war  was  merely  a  situation 
in  which  great  numbers  of  men  or  of  ships  fought  one 
another.  I  had  had  no  clear  idea  connected  with  war  ex 
cept  that  of  fighting. 

After  the  brief,  but  vividly  illuminating,  talk  of  Luce 
I  realized  that  a  war  is  a  contest,  and  that  fighting  is 
merely  a  means  of  deciding  the  contest.  I  realized  that, 
in  every  war,  there  is  a  conflict  not  only  of  purposes,  but 
also  of  ideas,  and  that  this  conflict  of  ideas  is  not  only  in 
the  causes  of  the  war,  but  also  in  the  way  in  which  the 
contestants  on  each  side  wage  the  contest.  I  saw  that 
in  every  war  each  side  tries  to  effect  some  purpose,  and 
that  it  merely  uses  fighting  to  effect  the  purpose.  I  saw 
that  the  side  which  understands  its  purpose  the  most 
clearly,  which  selects  the  best  way  of  accomplishing  its 
purpose,  and  which  has  the  best  machine  ready  when  war 
breaks  out,  must  win.  I  saw  that  war  differs  from  all 
the  other  activities  of  men  in  one  way  only,  in  being  the 
most  important  activity;  and  that  the  same  qualities  of 
foresight,  preparation,  and  energy  which  affect  success 
in  all  other  activities  affect  success  in  war. 

I  have  never  forgotten  that  brief  address  of  Admiral 
Luce  and  the  illumination  which  it  brought,  and  I  shall 
never  forget  that  Admiral  Luce  then  said  that  he  him 
self  had  always  supposed  that  war  was  merely  a  matter 
of  fighting  until  he  happened  to  have  a  conversation  with 
General  Sherman  not  long  before  Sherman  took  Atlanta, 
in  which  Sherman  told  him  what  he  was  going  to  do. 
Luce  said  he  suddenly  realized  that  war  was  a  matter  of 
brains;  that  Sherman  was  simply  carrying  out  a  plan 


WAR  COLLEGE  363 

which  he  had  previously  conceived  in  his  mind,  and  that 
fighting  is  merely  the  instrument  for  carrying  out  one's 
thought  in  war,  just  as  the  pen  is  an  instrument  for  re 
cording  one's  thought  on  paper. 

The  course  at  the  war  college  that  summer  of  1903  was 
much  like  my  previous  course  there  in  1896.  The  war 
college  had  become  somewhat  more  firmly  established, 
however,  and  it  now  lived  in  a  handsome  granite  man 
sion,  instead  of  in  a  ''poor  house."  The  fact  that  Ad 
miral,  then  Captain,  Mahan  had  been  put  on  the  strategy 
board  in  Washington  during  the  Spanish  War,  and  that 
many  of  the  calculations  which  the  war  college  had  made 
in  the  matter  of  transportation  of  supplies  and  the  use 
of  supply  vessels  and  scouts,  had  been  found  valuable  by 
the  Navy  Department,  had  made  the  war  college  much 
more  respected  by  most  naval  officers  than  it  had  been 
before.  Nevertheless,  the  summer  at  the  war  college  was 
looked  on  largely  as  a  vacation,  and  no  one  injured  his 
health  by  too  much  hard  work.  We  had  tactical  games 
and  strategic  games  of  interesting  kinds;  but  the  games 
were  regarded  more  lightly  than  they  are  regarded  now. 

When  the  summer  course  was  over,  I  was  ordered  to 
duty  as  inspector  of  ordnance  at  Cramp's  shipyard  in 
Philadelphia.  I  was  not  overjoyed  with  these  orders, 
because  I  was  tied  to  a  house  in  New  York ;  but  I  realized 
that  the  orders  were  perfectly  proper,  and  so  I  reported 
for  duty  at  Cramp's  shipyard  in  a  few  days. 

Many  officers  have  been  on  duty  as  inspectors  at 
Cramp's  shipyard.  Most  of  them  have  not  liked  the 
duty  very  much,  so  far  as  the  duty  itself  was  concerned ; 
for  it  has  meant  dirty  hands  and  face,  oil  on  the  clothes, 
climbing  about  ships  under  construction,  and  many  dis 
agreeable  things  of  that  kind.  But  they  have  realized 
that  such  duty  gives  an  officer  a  more  exact  idea  of  engi 
neering  and  ordnance  apparatus  as  it  actually  is  in  ships 
than  any  other  duty  does,  and  many  officers  have  be 
lieved  that  no  officer's  education  is  quite  complete  unless 
he  has  had  one  year  at  least  of  some  such  duty. 


364     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIRAL 

A  man  gets  a  good  deal  of  exercise  on  inspection  duty. 
One  usually  associates  arduous  exercise  with  a  thin  man, 
but  I  recollect  one  man  with  some  name  like  Murphy,  the 
foreman  of  a  large  gang  of  men  who  ran  electric  wires 
in  the  ships  then  building,  who  was  enormously  fat.  This 
poor  fellow  had  to  climb  up  and  down  ladders,  go  on  his 
hands  and  knees  along  rough  decks  in  narrow  passages, 
and  do  a  good  deal  of  walking  about  the  shipyard,  some 
times  in  very  hot  weather.  He  was  bewailing  his  fate  to 
me  one  day,  saying  that  it  was  ten  times  as  hard  for  him 
to  do  that  kind  of  work  as  it  would  be  for  me.  I  said  to 
him: 

"Well,  there  's  one  good  thing  about  it,  it  gives  you 
plenty  of  exercise,  and  your  weight  shows  that  it  gives 
you  a  good  digestion." 

"Oh,  Mr.  Fiske,"  he  answered,  "the  way  I  have  dys 
pepsia  is  something  awful!" 

My  tour  of  duty  at  Cramp's  shipyard  lasted  until  Oc 
tober,  1905,  a  little  more  than  two  years.  The  duty  was 
purely  of  a  routine  character,  and,  as  I  was  fairly  versed 
in  ordnance,  and  in  mechanical  appliances  in  general,  and 
had  excellent  assistants,  I  was  able  to  go  to  New  York 
frequently  and  work  on  the  optical  "turret  range- 
finder,"  which  I  had  patented  on  November  20,  1900,  and 
which  I  was  having  made  at  my  own  expense  by  the 
Western  Electric  Company. 

This  range-finder  was  completed  and  secured  on  the 
after  turret  of  the  U.  S.  S.  Maine  in  the  latter  part  of 
1903.  That  winter  the  fleet  went  to  Pensacola  for  target 
practice,  as  it  had  done  the  winter  before.  After  it  ar 
rived  there,  I  went  to  Pensacola  from  New  York,  and 
was  kindly  given  a  vacant  room  on  board  the  Maine.  My 
room  was  on  the  starboard  side  of  a  narrow  passage  on 
the  port  side  of  the  upper  deck.  Across  the  passage, 
which  was  about  four  feet  wide,  was  the  room  of  the 
chief  engineer  of  the  ship,  an  excellent  man  named  War- 
burton,  who  had  been  graduated  from  the  Naval  Acad- 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  365 

emy  as  a  cadet  engineer  the  year  after  I  graduated  as  a 
midshipman. 

A  few  mornings  after  I  had  joined  the  Maine,  just  as 
I  had  completed  my  toilet  and  was  about  to  leave  my 
room,  I  heard  what  sounded  like  a  pistol-shot.  I  did 
not  attach  much  importance  to  it,  and  stepped  out  in  the 
passageway  outside  of  my  door.  I  saw  the  executive 
officer,  Lieutenant-Commander  T.  S.  Rodgers,  standing 
there,  with  a  very  grave  look  on  his  face. 

"Did  you  hear  that  pistol-shot?"  he  inquired. 

"I  heard  something,"  I  answered,  "that  sounded  like 
a  pistol-shot."  Rodgers  put  his  hand  on  the  door-knob 
of  Warburton's  room  and  hesitated  a  moment.  Then 
we  saw  a  little  stream  of  blood  coming  out  from  under 
Warburton's  door,  and  Rodgers  pulled  the  door  open. 
There  on  the  floor  of  his  room  we  saw  Warburton  lying 
dead,  with  a  small  revolver  in  his  hand.  I  have  never 
heard  any  explanation  for  his  act,  or  that  anybody  had 
previously  noticed  anything  peculiar  in  Warburton's 
manner  or  appearance. 

I  stayed  at  Pensacola  about  ten  days,  during  which 
time  the  Maine  took  part  with  the  fleet  in  the  regular  tar 
get  practice.  Many  officers  had  told  me  that  it  was 
foolish  to  expect  that  so  delicate  an  instrument  as  a  range- 
finder,  placed  on  a  turret,  could  withstand  the  tremendous 
concussion  produced  by  the  firing  of  the  guns.  One  of 
the  purposes  of  my  trip  to  Pensacola  was  to  ascertain 
whether  or  not  it  could  do  so.  This  range-finder  was  se 
cured  in  position  on  top  of  the  turret  with  a  wooden  cover 
over  it ;  because  this  was  the  only  way  in  which  the  range- 
finder  could  be  secured  to  the  turret  without  cutting  holes 
in  the  sides  of  the  turret;  and,  of  course,  it  would  have 
been  foolish  to  cut  holes  in  the  sides  of  the  turret  before 
it  was  known  that  the  range-finder  could  stand  the  con 
cussion.  Naturally,  I  did  not  enjoy  the  prospect  of  being 
on  the  top  of  the  turret  with  my  range-finder  when  the 
first  gun  was  fired.  But  I  found,  to  my  joy,  that  the 


366     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

shock  of  discharge  was  not  very  distressing,  and  that  it 
did  not  harm  the  range-finder  at  all.  I  found,  however, 
that  the  range-finder  was  not  sufficiently  accurate,  and 
that  I  should  have  to  throw  away  most  of  the  instrument 
and  make  another  one.  Fortunately,  I  had  already  de 
signed  one  on  another  optical  principle,  which  I  knew 
would  insure  the  needed  accuracy,  though  it  would  entail 
greater  liability  to  derangement. 

Not  long  after  this  my  office  in  Philadelphia  was  ex 
tended  so  as  to  take  charge  of  the  ordnance  work  then 
being  done  by  the  New  York  Shipbuilding  Company, 
in  Camden,  across  the  river.  So  I  applied  for  an 
other  stenographer,  and  another  one  shortly  appeared. 
He  came  in  one  morning,  and  introduced  himself  as  Mr. 
0 'Flaherty.  He  was  one  of  the  most  unimpressive  men 
I  had  ever  seen,  and  a  marked  contrast  to  the  handsome 
and  dignified  gentleman  whom  he  was  to  assist.  He  was 
altogether  so  unprepossessing  in  appearance  that  I 
thought  somebody  must  have  been  playing  a  joke  on  me, 
and  so  I  asked  him  to  sit  down,  not  knowing  what  else 
to  say.  Mr.  0 'Flaherty  sat  in  the  office  for  about  two 
hours,  during  which  time  I  hoped  nobody  would  come  into 
the  office  and  see  him  there.  Finally,  Mr.  Thompson  left 
his  seat  at  the  typewriter  for  a  moment,  leaving  a  half- 
written  page  that  he  had  been  slowly  and  carefully  typing. 
Hardly  was  he  out  of  his  chair,  when  Mr.  0 'Flaherty 
slipped  into  it,  and  began  to  hammer  the  keys  like  a 
Paderewski.  In  two  months  Mr.  0 'Flaherty  was  run 
ning  the  whole  office  so  far  as  its  interior  management 
was  concerned. 

The  four-arm  semaphore  system,  worked  by  hand 
power,  was  installed  in  a  number  of  the  battle-ships  by 
this  time,  and  working  very  well;  but  the  department 
finally  concluded  that  the  navy  had  now  arrived  at  such 
a  state  of  development,  and  had  so  many  skilled  electri 
cians  on  board  the  ships  and  such  complete  installations 
of  electrical  appliances  and  workshops,  that  it  would  be 
better  to  return  to  the  electrical  method.  So  four  electric 


FOUR-ARM  SEMAPHORE  367 

semaphore  apparatus  were  made,  and  installed  on  the 
Connecticut,  Kearsarge,  Alabama,  and  Kentucky.  By 
this  plan  it  was  practicable  to  signal  thirty-two  letters  a 
minute,  which  could  be  read  in  all  directions  for  six  sea 
miles  in  ordinary  weather. 

Just  after  they  had  all  been  installed  and  got  ready, 
and  the  fleet  was  going  south,  the  Flag-ship  Connecticut 
went  under  the  Brooklyn  Bridge.  It  had  been  necessary, 
of  course,  to  lower  the  mast  a  few  feet  in  order  to  go 
under  the  bridge ;  but  it  had  not  been  necessary  to  lower 
the  main-topmast  so  far  as  to  interfere  with  the  sema 
phore  arms.  After  the  Connecticut  had  passed  under 
the  bridge,  the  mast  was  raised  again  into  position ;  and 
just  as  the  final  pull  was  being  given  to  get  it  into  place, 
the  mast-rope  carried  away,  and  down  came  the  topmast, 
shaving  the  semaphore-arms  off  the  mast ! 

The  ship  was  bound  for  the  West  Indies,  where  the 
damage  could  not  be  rectified,  and  the  result  of  the  acci 
dent  was  that  all  the  West  India  cruise,  to  which  I  had 
looked  forward  so  eagerly  for  demonstrating  the  value 
of  the  four-arm  semaphore,  was  entirely  lost.  Just  then 
the  wireless  telegraph  became  established  in  full  favor, 
and  this  fact,  combined  with  the  disablement  of  the  Con 
necticut's  semaphores,  and  also  the  fact  that  I  had  to  go 
to  sea  soon  and  devote  myself  to  other  matters,  was  a 
death-blow  to  the  electric  four-arm  semaphore.  Never 
theless,  that  system  is  a  better  system  for  signaling  over 
the  usual  distances  over  which  visual  signals  are  sent 
than  any  now  used  in  the  navy,  except  of  course,  the  wire 
less  telegraph,  or  telephone.  But  these  are  so  superior 
to  all  other  agencies  that  they  are  rapidly  becoming  the 
principal  means  of  communication. 

The  work  of  changing  my  turret  range-finder  was  con 
siderable,  because  the  optical  design  of  the  new  one  was 
entirely  different  from  that  of  the  old  one.  All  the  cal 
culations  had  to  be  made  anew,  and  trials  had  to  be  held 
for  determining  if  the  instrument  was  theoretically  cor 
rect  and  if  it  was  probably  practical.  Everything  was 


368     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAK-ADMIRAL 

ready  by  the  spring  of  1905,  and  I  received  permission 
from  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  to  have  it  put  back  on  the 
after  turret  of  the  Maine.  I  also  received  permission  to 
be  present  at  the  test,  but  for  some  reason  I  was  not  noti 
fied  when  the  tests  took  place. 

When  the  report  of  the  test  finally  came  in,  it  stated 
that  the  concussion  of  the  gun  had  jarred  the  range- 
finder  out  of  adjustment,  so  that  its  indications  ceased  to 
be  correct.  The  instrument,  however,  was  not  injured. 

In  forwarding  the  report  of  the  board,  Admiral  Evans 
wrote  concerning  it : 

"From  these  reports  it  would  seem  that  this  type  of  range 
finder  has  been  given  a  fair  and  exhaustive  test,  and  has  proved 
that  it  is  not  satisfactory  for  use  on  board  ship  as  intended  by 
the  inventor;  that  is,  mounted  on  top  of  or  in  connection  with  a 
heavy  turret.  The  jar  of  the  guns,  the  lack  of  fine  and  easy 
control  of  the  turret  (to  which  the  range  finder  is  rigidly  con 
nected  as  regards  train)  and  the  interference  of  hot  gases  and 
smoke,  make  the  location  intended  for  a  mounting  of  this  range 
finder  a  very  poor  one.  ...  In  view  of  the  results  obtained,  I  re 
spectfully  recommend  that  this  range  finder  be  removed  from 
the  Maine  while  the  ship  is  now  in  New  York. ' ' 

I  had  the  instrument  removed  immediately  from  the 
Maine  and  taken  to  the  works  of  the  Western  Electric 
Company,  where  I  had  those  parts  strengthened  which 
had  been  found  to  be  weak.  On  December  12,  1905,  I 
wrote  the  bureau  requesting  permission  to  put  it  back  for 
further  tests,  stating  that  "I  have  strengthened  in  every 
way  I  can  think  of  the  turret  range-finder  that  was  tested 
in  the  Maine."  The  last  sentence  in  my  letter  read, ' ' One 
series  of  ten  observations  on  an  object  6580  yards  dis 
tant  had  an  average  error  of  only  51  y2  yards  at  that  dis 
tance."  This  was  great  accuracy  in  those  days. 

The  bureau  referred  my  request  to  Admiral  Evans  for 
his  recommendation,  and  Admiral  Evans  wrote  to  the 
bureau,  "I  do  not  deem  that  further  test  of  this  range 
finder  is  advisable."  Then  the  bureau  wrote  to  me,  "In 
view  of  the  statement  contained  in  a  preceding  endorse- 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  369 

ment  [Admiral  Evans'  recommendation]  the  Bureau  will 
not  recommend  further  tests  of  this  range  finder." 

I  wrote  back  to  the  bureau  that  there  seemed  to  be  a 
misunderstanding  to  the  effect  that  the  range-finder  I 
then  wished  to  submit  was  the  same  as  the  one  previ 
ously  tried,  whereas  I  had  spent  five  hundred  dollars  in 
making  changes,  and  asking  for  a  reconsideration.  The 
reconsideration  was  not  accorded  me. 

On  May  3,  1906,  while  I  was  in  command  of  the  Minne 
apolis,  I  wrote  another  letter  to  the  bureau,  pointing  out 
that,  in  view  of  the  increased  accuracy  of  guns,  increased 
uniformity  of  powder,  and  the  increase  in  accuracy  of 
gunnery  in  all  navies,  it  would  soon  become  vitally  neces 
sary  to  have  range-finders  of  longer  base  than  those  at 
present  used,  and  to  have  them  and  their  observers  in 
protected  positions.  In  view  of  these  facts,  I  again  re 
quested  permission  to  have  my  turret  range-finder  in 
stalled  on  the  after  turret  of  the  Maine.  In  reply  the 
Bureau  of  Ordnance  wrote : 

"As  the  Commander  in  Chief  of  the  U.  S.  Atlantic  Fleet  has 
already  given  this  device  a  trial  aboard  the  U.  S.  F.  S.  Maine, 
has  submitted  an  adverse  report  on  it,  and  has  recommended  that 
no  further  tests  be  made,  the  Bureau  must  decline  to  take  further 
action  in  the  matter. 

(Signed)      "N.  E.  MASON, 
"Chief  of  Bureau  of  Ordnance." 

On  May  11,  1906,  I  wrote  back  to  the  bureau,  saying 
that  I  had  explained  unofficially  to  Admiral  Evans  the 
changes  I  had  made  in  the  range-finder,  and  that  he  had 
told  me  that,  if  the  improved  range-finder  were  put  into 
the  Maine  when  she  returned  to  New  York  in  the  fol 
lowing  spring,  he  would  be  glad  to  give  it  a  fair  and 
rigid  trial. 

The  bureau  submitted  my  letter  to  Admiral  Evans,  and 
he  replied  again  unfavorably.  The  last  paragraph  of  his 
indorsement  on  the  letter  of  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  em 
bodied  the  gist  of  his  objections.  It  read  as  follows: 


370     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

' '  The  location  of  a  range-finder  in  a  turret  is  very  poor 
for  many  obvious  reasons.  Unless  the  other  qualities  of 
this  range-finder  are  such  as  to  outweigh  these  disadvan 
tages,  it  is  not  recommended  for  further  experiment  with 
such  a  range-finder." 

The  bureau  then  wrote  me: 

"The  Bureau  is  not  prepared  to  make  a  further  test 
of  the  turret  range-finder." 

I  saw  that  it  was  useless  to  "kick  against  the  pricks," 
and  so  I  decided  to  wait  until  some  favorable  opportunity 
should  present  itself. 


Ever  since  the  talk  of  Admiral  Luce  at  the  war  college 
in  the  summer  of  1903  a  thought  had  kept  coming  to  me 
continually,  that  there  was  a  lack  in  the  navy,  and  espe 
cially  in  the  management  of  the  navy,  of  that  comprehen 
sion  of  the  actual  nature  of  war  which  Luce  said  he  had 
received  from  Sherman,  and  which  Luce  had  tried  to 
impart  to  us.  It  seemed  to  me  that  the  navy  was  con 
cerned  wholly  with  the  material  guns  and  ships  and  men, 
and  devoting  very  little  thought  to  the  methods  by  which 
the  guns  and  ships  should  be  operated,  or  even  to  the 
strategic  principles  which  should  govern  their  construc 
tion.  I  realized  more  clearly  the  truth  of  the  lessons 
which  Captain  Taylor  had  been  trying  to  teach  us,  and 
which  Mahan  had  been  trying  to  teach  the  world  in  his 
"Influence  of  Sea  Power  on  History."  From  their 
point  of  view,  the  navy  consisted  of  many  agencies,  such 
as  the  various  bureaus,  men,  ships,  and  guns,  but  without 
any  head  which  could  give  them  direction  for  the  purposes 
of  war  except  the  secretary  of  the  navy.  Of  course  there 
was  a  secretary  of  the  navy,  and  the  work  of  giving  these 
activities  direction  devolved  upon  him.  But  he  was  a 
civilian  untrained  in  war,  and  without  any  guide  except 
his  own  mental  abilities,  to  enable  him  to  direct  these 
agencies  toward  a  given  object  or  to  decide  what  the 
object  ought  to  be. 


PRIZE  ESSAY  371 

Naturally,  it  was  clear  that  the  secretary  could  direct 
all  those  agencies  by  simply  telling  each  agency  what  to 
do,  just  as  a  child  can  move  the  pieces  on  a  chess-board. 
It  was  also  clear  that  the  secretary  could  direct  all  those 
agencies  toward  any  objective  that  he  wished,  just  as  a 
child  could  point  a  pistol  in  any  direction  he  wished. 
I  remembered  what  the  old  sailor  had  said  to  me  in  1873, 
that  it  was  easy  to  be  a  naval  officer,  but  hard  to  be  a 
good  one,  and  this  made  me  see  that  it  must  be  easy  for 
a  man  to  be  secretary  of  the  navy,  but  actually  impossible 
for  a  man  to  be  a  really  efficient  secretary  of  the  navy  if 
called  upon  to  prepare  a  navy  for  war  or  to  operate  a 
navy  in  war  against  a  navy  directed  by  a  skilful  strate 
gist  unless  he  were  a  skilful  strategist  himself.  I  began 
to  see  that  the  question  of  success  in  war  depends  on 
skill  in  preparing  for  war  and  in  conducting  it,  and  that 
the  most  important  thing  in  any  navy  is  the  same  as  the 
most  important  thing  in  any  man — the  head.  These 
ideas  got  such  hold  on  me  that  they  had  to  come  out,  and 
they  finally  resulted  in  an  essay  called  "American  Naval 
Policy,"  which  I  submitted  to  the  United  States  Institute 
in  December,  1904. 

This  essay  was  pessimistic  in  the  last  degTee,  and  found 
fault  with  nearly  everything  in  the  navy,  and  praised  al 
most  nothing;  but  it  was  constructive  and  not  destruc 
tive,  because  it  proposed  a  remedy.  The  remedy,  of 
course,  was  a  general  staff,  which  should  study  con 
tinually  the  situations  which  the  navy  mi^ht  have  to 
meet,  and  which  should  devise  measures  b^y  which  the 
navy  could  meet  them  successfully. 

Rear- Admiral  Henry  C.  Taylor  had  been  m.ade  chief  of 
the  Bureau  of  Navigation  after  being  presiclent  of  the 
war  college,  and  had  been  successful  in  a  moderate  way 
in  making  the  navy  see  the  light,  and  had  go'.t  the  Gen 
eral  Board  established  and  a  concentrated  fleot  formed 
in  the  North  Atlantic.  But  Taylor  had  died  abo.ut  a  year 
before,  and  left  the  navy  without  a  leader,  M.7  essay 


372     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

was  an  effort  to  set  forth  what  I  knew  to  be  substantially 
his  views. 

When  the  Naval  Institute  announced  the  outcome  of 
the  annual  contest  for  the  prize  essay,  it  announced  that 
my  essay  had  received  the  first  prize,  which  was  two 
hundred  dollars  and  a  gold  medal,  and  that  Admiral  Luce 
had  received  the  second  prize.  When  these  two  essays 
came  to  be  read  afterward,  it  was  seen  that,  although  the 
title  of  my  essay  was  "  American  Naval  Policy,"  and  the 
title  of  his  essay  was  "Naval  Administration,"  they 
preached  the  same  doctrine  and  reached  virtually  identi 
cal  conclusions.  Both  preached  the  doctrine  that  men, 
guns,  and  ships  are  simply  the  instruments  with  which 
war  is  carried  on,  and  both  reached  the  conclusion  that, 
if  our  men,  ships,  and  guns  were  to  be  made  to  fight  ef 
fectively,  they  must  be  directed  toward  the  correct  ob 
jective,  and  made  to  work  together  toward  that  objective. 
The  further  conclusion  was  that  the  only  possible  way  by 
which  to  achieve  these  results  was  to  have  the  navy  di 
rected  by  a  general  staff. 

One  sentence  in  the  latter  part  of  my  essay,  in  which 
I  was  leading  up  to  the  conclusion,  read, 

"Incredible  as  it  may  appear,  it  seems  nevertheless  to  be  a 
fact  that  our  naval  establishment,  enormous  as  it  is,  and  the 
guardian  of  the  wealth  of  the  wealthiest  country  in  the  world, 
has  simply  been  put  together  piecemeal,  and  has  never  been 
directed  by  a  policy  based  on  fundamental  principles.  It  has 
never  had  the  advantage  of  such  direction  as  has  been  given 
to  commercial  organizations  by  men  who  made  a  special  study  of 
the  policy  that  should  direct  them;  by  boards  of  directors,  led 
by  men  like  Scott,  Westinghouse,  Rockefeller,  Huntington, 
Carnegie  and  Cassatt.  These  men  devoted  their  lives  to  further 
ing  the  aims  of  their  respective  companies ;  and  they  understood 
the  aims  of  their  companies  from  a  standpoint  so  far  removed 
from  the  details,  that  they  were  able  to  direct  the  details,  instead 
of  being  directed  by  them. ' ' 

After  comparing  the  administration  of  the  Navy  De 
partment  with  the  administration  of  all  other  organiza- 


PRIZE  ESSAY  373 

tions  in  the  world,  commercial,  military,  and  naval,  the 
following  paragraph  was  put  forward: 

"We  see,  therefore,  that  our  navy  is  administered  by 
a  policy  which  is  the  reverse  of  that  of  every  other  large 
organization  of  the  world. ' ' 

The  argument  then  pointed  out  that,  in  order  to  justify 
such  a  system  of  administration,  it  would  be  necessary  to 
prove  that  it  was  better  than  the  others.  Some  pages  of 
argument  then  followed  to  show  that  this  could  not  pos 
sibly  be  proved ;  in  fact,  that  it  was  not  true. 

The  essay  closed  by  declaring  the  excellence  of  our 
men,  ships,  and  guns,  and  admitting  the  great  importance 
of  technical  matters ;  and  then  the  following  sentence  was 
put  forward : 

"But  the  very  fact  of  the  tremendous  importance  of 
technical  matters  is  the  greatest  reason  why  they  should 
be  directed  aright  to  get  the  military  results  we  need." 

The  need  for  action  was  then  urged  in  securing  the 
establishment  of  a  general  staff  and  in  giving  that  staff 
executive  authority.  In  an  endeavor  to  allay  the  fear 
which  has  been  the  greatest  handicap  the  navy  has  suf 
fered  from  during  all  its  life,  the  fear  that  the  "power" 
of  the  secretary  would  be  lessened,  the  following  sentence 
was  written,  "No  authority  given  to  a  subordinate  can 
truly  be  said  to  lessen  the  power  of  his  superior." 

It  is  an  extraordinary  fact,  which  I  have  never  been 
quite  able  to  explain,  that  it  seems  almost  impossible  to 
make  a  man  who  has  not  had  military  training  realize  that 
power  delegated  to  a  subordinate  by  a  chief  does  not 
lessen  the  power  of  that  chief. 

The  essay  was  extraordinarily  successful.  I  think  I 
am  right  in  saying  that  that  essay  received  more  favor 
able  attention  than  any  other  essay  that  has  ever  been 
published  by  the  Institute  before  or  since.  It  was  ap 
proved  by  naval  officers  everywhere  and  commented  on 
favorably  in  the  public  press ;  but  of  course  it  made  no 
impression  on  the  minds  of  the  only  people  who  could 
exert  any  influence  in  the  matter,  the  members  of  Con- 


374     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

gress.  The  country  was  so  thoroughly  committed  to  the 
proposition  that  the  military  must  be  subordinate  to  the 
civil  authority  that  no  amount  of  subordination  seemed 
to  be  excessive. 

Secretary  Long  had  written  a  book  called  "The  New 
Navy,"  at  the  extreme  end  of  which  he  warned  the  peo 
ple  against  having  a  general  staff.  His  argument  was 
based  wholly  upon  the  assumption  that  it  would  lessen 
the  "power"  of  the  secretary,  and  on  the  further  assump 
tion  that  it  would  be  a  calamity  to  have  his  power  les 
sened.  Not  a  word  was  said  about  the  efficiency  of  the 
navy  or  about  its  effectiveness  in  doing  the  work  which 
the  country  expected  it  to  do.  This  has  been  the  case 
with  all  arguments  against  a  general  staff  not  only  for 
the  navy  but  also  for  the  army.  The  arguments  in  favor 
of  a  general  staff,  on  the  other  hand,  have  not  been  based 
on  any  personal  or  political  considerations,  but  wholly  on 
questions  of  efficiency  and  effectiveness. 

In  other  words,  the  opposition  to  a  general  staff  has 
been  political,  and  the  efforts  for  a  general  staff  have  been 
national.  Politicians  in  all  countries  have  always  been 
opposed  to  what  they  call  "militarism,"  which  they  have 
persuaded  the  people  to  think  menaces  their  liberties. 
Militarism  does  not  menace  the  liberties  of  the  people, 
but  it  does  menace  the  irresponsible  powers  of  poli 
ticians.  The  correct  meaning  of  the  word  militarism  has 
the  same  connection  with  the  word  military  that  the  cor 
rect  meaning  of  the  word  "pacifism"  has  with  "pacific," 
that  "realism"  has  with  "realistic,"  "empiricism"  with 
"empiric"  and  "symbolism"  with  "symbolic,"  that  any 
noun  ending  with  "ism"  has  with  its  corresponding 
adjective.  Militarism,  in  its  correct  meaning,  stands  for 
something  that  is  good  and  strong  and  honest  and  effi 
cient  in  a  country. 

In  my  prize  essay  I  devoted  much  attention  also  to  a 
controversy  which  was  then  raging  vigorously,  and  on 
occasions  bitterly.  The  controversy  was  about  the 
building  of  larger  battle-ships.  The  great  majority  of 


COMPROMISELESS  SHIPS  375 

officers  felt  that  the  largest  ships  then  in  existence,  which 
had  a  displacement  of  16,000  tons,  like  our  Connecticut, 
were  at  the  extreme  limit  of  effective  size,  if,  in  fact,  they 
were  not  really  beyond  it.  These  officers  represented 
the  conservative  element,  but  were  led  by  no  less  a  person 
than  Mahan.  It  was  stated,  however,  that  the  Japanese 
were  about  to  build  battle-ships  of  18,000  tons,  and  that 
the  English  were  actually  building  the  Dreadnought  of 
18,000  tons.  In  my  essay  I  argued  about  the  subject 
from  different  points  of  view,  engineering,  tactical,  and 
strategic,  and  concluded  that  we  should  proceed  to  build 
ships  of  20,000  tons  at  once,  and  prepare  to  build  larger 
ships  afterward.  I  summed  up  as  follows : 

"We  may  accept  it  as  a  principle,  therefore,  that  we 
should  make  our  battle-ships  as  large  as  the  state  of  the 
engineering  arts  permits." 

My  essay  appeared  in  March,  1905.  At  the  following 
session  of  Congress,  one  year  later,  the  Delaware,  of 
20,000  tons,  was  authorized,  and  in  the  following  year 
her  sister-ship  the  North  Dakota  was  authorized.  Since 
then  our  ships  have  been  growing  steadily  larger  and 
larger,  as  the  progress  of  the  engineering  arts  has  made 
larger  and  larger  castings  and  forgings  practicable.  In 
September,  1905,  in  order  to  answer  the  criticisms  of 
some  officers  who  held  that  I  had  gone  too  far  in  advo 
cating  20,000-ton  battle-ships,  I  wrote  an  essay  for  the 
Naval  Institute,  which  I  called  "Compromiseless  Ships," 
in  which  I  pointed  out  that  the  larger  a  ship  is,  the  fewer 
compromises  have  to  be  made  in  her  construction,  in  ad 
justing  the  conflicting  claims  of  gunnery  power,  armor 
protection,  and  speed;  and  that  a  20,000-ton  ship,  while 
not  quite  a  compromiseless  ship,  would  be  much  more 
nearly  so  than  a  smaller  ship.  Part  of  the  argument  was 
based  on  assumption  that  by  the  time  such  ships  were 
built,  the  torpedo  would  have  a  range  of  4000  yards;  so 
that  the  guns  of  an  enemy  would  be  kept  away  that  dis 
tance,  thus  permitting  lighter  armor  than  if  the  torpedo 
range  was  shorter.  The  question  of  big  ships  was  then 


376     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

being  so  hotly  discussed  that  this  paper  attracted  a  great 
deal  of  attention  from  the  press.  Curiously,  the  idea 
of  being  able  to  fire  torpedoes  4000  yards  was  considered 
a  weak  point  in  my  argument,  because  such  a  range  was 
considered  impossible.  Even  London  Engineering,  in 
its  issue  of  November  17,  1905,  said,  at  the  conclusion  of 
a  long  editorial  which  had  spoken  most  commendingly 
of  my  paper,  "But  we  wish  he  had  not  placed  so  much 
confidence  in  a  broadside  of  torpedoes  at  4000  yards." 
And  now  torpedoes  have  gone  13,000  yards  and  more ! 

Before  leaving  New  York  to  join  the  Petrel  in  1896, 
I  had  given  a  power  of  attorney  in  the  matter  of  my 
telescope  sight  and  other  inventions,  owned  by  the  Ameri 
can  Range  Finder  Company,  to  Park  Benjamin,  who  had 
been  the  patent  attorney  who  took  out  the  patents. 
After  my  departure,  the  company  ascertained  that  the 
Bureau  of  Ordnance  was  infringing  the  patents  they 
owned ;  and  so  after  many  letters  had  been  interchanged, 
and  other  things  had  been  done  which  I  did  not  hear 
about  until  afterward,  the  company  brought  suit  in 
November,  1899,  against  the  Newport  News  Shipbuilding 
and  Dry  Dock  Company,  and  also  against  George  N. 
Saegmuller,  for  infringing  the  patent  of  my  telescope 
sight,  alleging  that  he  was  using  and  manufacturing 
things  patented.  I  was  told  that  the  company  finally 
sold  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  the  right  to  use  the  tele 
scope  sight  for  the  sum  of  $10,000.  This  was  a  most 
foolish  act. 

About  1900  the  American  Range  Finder  Company  was 
bought  out  by  Charles  B.  Van  Nostrand,  one  of  the  orig 
inal  directors,  who  had  lost  about  $30,000  by  the  under 
taking.  The  expense  of  keeping  up  my  foreign  pat 
ents  had  caused  the  abandoning  one  after  another  of 
all  those  patents  with  the  exception  of  my  telescope 
sight  patents  in  France  and  Great  Britain.  As  my  con 
tract  with  the  company  was  that  I  should  receive  one 
fifth  of  the  profits,  and  as  there  had  been  no  profits,  I 
had  received  no  money;  but  as  my  contract  did  not  say 


WIRELESS  TELEGRAPH  BOARD  377 

that  I  should  pay  one  fifth  of  the  losses,  I  did  not 
have  to  pay  out  any  money.  Of  course  it  was  to  my 
interest,  from  a  purely  business  point  of  view,  to  pur- 
suade  Mr.  Van  Nostrand  to  keep  up  the  French  and 
British  patents,  no  matter  what  it  might  cost  him,  in  the 
hope  that  the  French  and  British  Governments  would 
pay  for  the  use  of  my  patents,  as  they  ought  to  do.  In 
1905,  however,  I  advised  him  to  give  up  the  French 
patents,  as  we  saw  little  chance  of  bringing  any  pressure 
on  the  French  Government.  Mr.  Van  Nostrand  and  I 
thought,  however,  that  we  had  a  good  chance  with  the 
British  Government,  whose  declared  policy  was  to  pay 
for  patents  which  they  infringed,  and  as  we  both  knew 
some  important  people  in  London,  we  thought  that  the 
British  Government  might  be  induced  to  do  so  in  the  case 
of  my  patents.  After  trying  for  a  couple  of  years,  how 
ever,  at  considerable  additional  expense  to  Mr.  Van  Nos 
trand,  I  advised  him  not  to  spend  any  more  money  on  the 
project,  but  to  let  the  patents  go.  This  he  did. 

The  Wireless  Telegraph  Board  was  formed  about  this 
time,  and  I  was  made  a  member  of  it.  The  two  other 
members  were  Captain  John  A.  Rogers  and  my  classmate 
Peters.  We  used  the  Topeka  and  the  lighthouse  station 
on  the  Highlands  at  Navesink,  New  Jersey,  as  sending 
and  receiving  stations,  the  Topeka  going  out  and  back, 
and  the  members  of  the  board  taking  turns  at  the  two 
stations.  One  bright  hot  forenoon,  when  my  station 
was  on  shore  I  could  see  the  Topeka  hardly  more  than 
a  mile  away,  but  could  not  exchange  any  signals  what 
ever  by  wireless  on  account  of  the  static  in  the  air.  So 
we  signaled  back  and  forth  by  means  of  the  ordinary 
signal-flag,  and  then  the  Topeka  started  off.  As  the  day 
grew  older,  the  static  in  the  air  diminished,  and  we  were 
able  to  signal  over  considerable  distances.  On  one  occa 
sion  we  established  a  record  for  wireless  telegraph,  158 
miles. 

In  December,  1905,  I  published  an  article  in  the  Naval 
Institute,  called  "The  Stadimeter  in  Fire  Control." 


378     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIKAL 

The  purpose  of  the  article  was  to  point  out  from  meas 
urements  made  by  myself  of  distant  objects,  whose  dis 
tances  and  height  were  accurately  known,  that  the  ac 
curacy  of  the  stadimeter  was  very  much  greater  than  was 
ordinarily  supposed ;  that  with  an  object  ISl1/^  feet  high 
at  6580  yards,  the  average  error  was  only  35~y2  yards; 
and  that,  if  it  were  carefully  adjusted,  the  stadimeter 
would  be  a  most  valuable  instrument  in  "fire  control"; 
that  is,  in  controlling  the  fire  of  the  guns  of  a  ship.  Of 
course  this  was  my  intent  when  I  invented  the  instru 
ment  in  1890,  and  this  was  the  use  to  which  I  put  it  at 
the  Battle  of  Manila,  the  first  time  that  "spotting"  was 
ever  done.  Ranges  increased  so  rapidly  after  my  article 
was  published,  however,  that  the  stadimeter  fell  behind 
the  requirements.  So  I  invented  and  developed  my 
"horizometer,"  which  is  merely  an  improvement  though 
a  very  considerable  improvement  over  the  stadimeter. 

In  January,  1906,  I  published  an  article  in  the  Naval 
Institute  called  "Why  Togo  Won."  The  gist  of  the 
article  was  that  Admiral  Togo  had  won  because  he  had 
prepared  his  fleet  better  than  Admiral  Rojesvensky  had 
prepared  his,  and  that  the  difference  lay  in  the  realism 
of  the  preparation. 

One  sentence  was  "In  the  battle  of  the  Sea  of  Japan, 
the  Russians  went  into  battle  for  the  first  time,  while 
the  Japanese  had  been  in  battle  only  ten  months  before ; 
many  of  their  officers  had  seen  service  in  the  war  with 
China,  and  all  had  had  the  tremendous  advantage  of  bat 
tle  training  and  experience."  Another  sentence  was, 
' '  The  best  preparation  for  a  given  work  is  to  rehearse  it 
under  conditions  as  close  as  possible  to  those  under 
which  the  real  work  itself  will  have  to  be  performed." 
The  article  was  a  protest  against  the  routine  into  which 
the  fleet  was  falling,  and  the  unrealistic  character  of  the 
fleet  drills,  even  of  the  target  practice. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

COMMANDING    THE  MINNEAPOLIS 

IN  early  March,  1906,  I  received  orders  to  command 
the  U.  S.  S.  Minneapolis,  then  at  Hampton  Roads. 
The  Minneapolis  and  the  Columbia  were  the  two  fastest 
vessels  in  the  navy.  They  were  412  feet  long,  and  had 
a  speed  of  twenty-three  knots  on  their  trial  trips.  I  re 
ported  on  board,  relieving  Captain  James  M.  Miller  on 
March  10,  and  assumed  command  that  day. 

My  feelings  on  assuming  command  were  the  reverse 
of  joyous.  I  was  only  three  months  short  of  being  fifty- 
two  years  old,  and  I  had  always  heard  that  if  a  man  ar 
rived  at  a  command  position  after  the  age  of  forty,  he 
was  too  old  to  discharge  its  duties  well.  I  had  always 
heard  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  for  a  man  to  be 
come  accustomed  to  independent  responsibility  early  in 
life,  and  that  if  a  man  had  those  responsibilities  fall  on 
him  when  he  had  passed  his  prime,  he  was  apt  to  break 
down  under  the  load.  I  realized  that  if  anybody  was 
liable  to  break  down  for  those  reasons,  I  was,  because 
I  was  of  a  highly  nervous  temperament,  and  circum 
stances  had  been  such  that  I  had  never  handled  a  ship 
at  all  myself.  Two  minute  exceptions  were  moving  the 
Petrel  on  from  one  anchorage  to  another  about  two 
hundred  yards  distant,  and  taking  the  Manila  out  into 
Manila  Bay.  But  here  I  was  in  command  of  a  ship  that 
everybody  knew  was  hard  to  handle,  because  she  was  so 
long  and  narrow. 

So,  when  I  went  on  deck  with  Captain  Miller,  and  saw 
all  my  future  crew  standing  on  the  deck  looking  at  me, 
I  seemed  to  see  in  front  of  my  eyes  the  words  which  I 
had  once  seen  on  the  outside  of  a  book  of  Victor  Hugo's, 
"Les  dernier s  jours  d'  un  condamne." 

379 


380     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIBAL 

A  few  days  afterward  I  had  to  get  the  ship  under  way 
and  go  to  Newport  News.  I  realized  that  I  had  to  go 
there  and  anchor  with  the  tide,  that  there  were  a  great 
many  schooners  in  the  way,  and  that  there  would  prob 
ably  be  many  schooners  where  I  should  want  to  anchor. 
I  handled  ships  a  great  many  times  after  that,  but  I 
never  had  a  more  difficult  task  than  the  one  given  to  me 
that  day.  The  strange  part  of  it  is  that  I  never  did 
better  than  I  did  that  day.  Inwardly,  I  was  badly  fright 
ened;  but  I  have  always  found  that  the  more  frightened 
I  was  beforehand,  the  better  I  have  done.  I  remember 
my  father  telling  me  that  whenever  he  started  to  make  a 
speech,  and  felt  perfectly  master  of  himself  and  per 
fectly  calm,  he  was  always  dull. 

Two  months  later  my  mother  died,  and  we  took  her 
body  to  our  family  burying-ground  in  Auburn,  New  York, 
my  two  brothers,  my  sister,  and  I.  Her  death  broke  a 
bond  that  was  stronger  than  I  realized,  and  even  now  I 
find  myself  occasionally  forgetting  that  she  is  dead,  and 
thinking  that  I  will  tell  her  something.  As  we  walked 
back  from  the  burying-ground,  I  remember  saying  to  my 
brothers  and  sister,  who  were  younger  than  I,  "It  's 
my  turn  next." 

That  summer  the  Naval  Academy  Practice  Squadron 
consisted  of  the  Minneapolis,  Denver,  Cleveland,  and  Des 
Moines,  the  Minneapolis  being  the  flag-ship,  and  carry 
ing  the  flag  of  Rear-Admiral  Royal  Bird  Bradford.  We 
started  from  Hampton  Roads  on  the  fifteenth  of  June, 
and  were  caught  by  a  strong  gale  on  the  following  day. 
The  condition  of  the  poor  midshipmen  on  board  those 
four  ships,  crowded  together  as  they  were  and  dread 
fully  seasick,  was  deplorable;  but  it  was  over  in  a  few 
days,  and  bright  sunshine  and  smooth  seas  convoyed  us 
to  Madeira.  A  week's  stay  in  that  wonderfully  beauti 
ful  and  picturesque  island,  with  an  occasional  glass  of 
old  Madeira,  trips  up  and  down  the  steep  slopes  of  the 
mountains,  and  some  quiet  dinners  at  quiet  homes,  left 
many  pleasant  pictures  in  my  mind,  as  like  experiences 


COMMANDING  THE  MINNEAPOLIS        381 

have  done  in  the  minds  of  thousands  of  other  sailors  dur 
ing  many  years.  One  of  the  wise  remarks  that  I  bore 
away  in  my  memory  from  Madeira  was  made  by  a  pretty 
Portuguese  girl  who  spoke  English  very  well.  During 
a  conversation  after  dinner  with  a  little  party  she  said 
to  me,  in  reply  to  some  remark  which  I  had  made,  * '  But, 
Captain,  it  seems  to  me  that  you  are  confusing  happiness 
and  pleasure;  you  know  they  are  very  different  things." 

We  went  from  Madeira  to  the  Azores.  About  an  hour 
after  leaving  the  anchorage,  while  I  was  still  on  the 
bridge,  a  stowaway  was  brought  to  me,  who  had  been 
discovered  under  the  cover  of  one  of  the  boats.  He  was 
perhaps  fourteen  years  old,  and  was  badly  frightened 
and  crying  bitterly.  He  talked  English  a  little,  and  told 
me  he  wanted  to  go  to  the  United  States. 

At  this  time  there  was  a  desire  among  the  young  men 
of  Madeira  to  get  to  the  United  States ;  I  suppose  it  was 
some  sort  of  vague  ambition.  But  Madeira  was  so  much 
more  beautiful  than  almost  any  place  in  the  United 
States,  the  climate  was  so  much  better,  and  the  condi 
tions  under  which  people  lived  there  were  so  much  pleas- 
anter  than  the  conditions  under  which  they  would  have 
to  live  if  they  came  to  the  United  States,  that  I  was  very 
glad  to  be  able  to  put  the  boy  ashore  at  Fayal,  in  the 
Azores,  two  days  later,  and  have  arrangements  made 
for  sending  him  back  home. 

It  is  sometimes  said,  by  way  of  reproach  about  some 
body,  that  he  does  not  know  when  he  is  well  off.  Does 
not  this  remark  apply  to  every  descendant  of  Adam  and 
Eve,  just  as  it  applied  to  Adam  and  Eve  themselves? 
Nations  rise  and  fall,  some  become  highly  civilized,  and 
some  do  not ;  but  have  human  beings  themselves  changed 
in  all  the  ages?  Are  they  any  better  or  happier  or 
wiser  than  were  their  ancestors  thousands  of  years  ago, 
or  than  are  the  inhabitants  of  Samoa  now?  Our  rail 
road  tracks  and  our  canals  and  our  cities  are,  after  all, 
mere  scratches  on  the  surface  of  the  earth,  and  the  earth 
turns  round  at  the  same  speed,  and  goes  around  the  sun 


382     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

in  the  same  time,  and  the  seasons  come  and  go,  just  as 
if  we  were  not  here  at  all.  "Why  do  the  heathen  rage?" 
Perhaps  it  is  for  the  same  reason  as  that  which  impels 
a  man  to  walk  briskly  in  the  keen,  fresh  air,  that  impels 
a  boy  to  play,  a  baby  to  crawl,  a  dog  to  bark,  and  a  flower 
to  grow — the  desire  to  expend  stored-up  energy. 

We  had  a  pleasant  trip  westward  from  the  Azores 
until  within  about  two  days'  steaming  of  our  destina 
tion,  which  was  Bar  Harbor,  Maine.  Then  we  ran  into 
one  of  these  dense  fogs  prevalent  in  this  part  of  the 
world  in  summer.  We  kept  going  ahead,  nevertheless, 
the  Minneapolis  leading,  and  finally  anchored  in  the 
haven  where  we  would  be,  still  in  a  dense  fog.  Navigat 
ing  in  a  fog  is  one  of  the  most  nerve-trying  things  that 
the  captain  and  the  navigator  of  a  ship  have  to  do. 

The  fog  persisted  for  two  more  days,  and  then  Ad 
miral  Bradford  hauled  down  his  flag,  having  reached  the 
retiring  age  of  sixty-two.  The  instant  that  that  flag 
came  down  he  was  changed  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye 
from  an  officer  of  high  command  in  the  navy  of  the 
United  States  into  a  simple  pensioner  of  the  Govern 
ment. 

Before  one  o  'clock  all  the  officers  and  men  were  drawn 
up  on  deck,  and  the  admiral's  barge  rode  at  the  gang 
way,  but  without  the  admiral's  flag;  then  the  admiral 
came  on  deck,  shook  hands  with  all  the  officers,  made  a 
brief  speech  to  the  men,  and  passed  over  the  gang 
way  to  the  barge.  Then  the  band  played  "Should  auld 
acquaintance  be  forgot,"  and  a  retired  rear-admiral 
steamed  slowly  to  the  shore. 

I  had  occupied  the  starboard  cabin  of  the  Minneapolis, 
and  Bradford  the  port  cabin.  I  had  had  a  steward,  a 
cook,  and  one  mess  attendant,  or  servant ;  Bradford  had 
had  a  steward,  a  cook,  and  two  mess  attendants.  By 
some  oversight,  Bradford's  servants  were  not  detached 
when  he  left  the  ship ;  and  so,  when  I  moved  into  Brad 
ford 's  cabin,  which  I  did  at  once,  I  had  two  stewards, 
two  cooks,  and  three  mess  attendants,  besides  the  or- 


derly,  who  was  always  at  the  cabin  door,  and  my  gig's 
crew.  Captains  of  ships  do  not  have  gig's  crews  now, 
because  they  have  no  gigs ;  but  in  those  days,  and  in  all 
previous  times,  every  captain  of  a  ship  had  a  gig,  a  long, 
narrow  boat,  pulled  by  oars,  for  his  exclusive  use. 

One  of  Bradford's  mess  attendants  was  a  Japanese 
named  Janasuki.  He  was  tall,  good-looking,  and  of  seri 
ous  demeanor.  Some  months  before,  when  at  Norfolk, 
Bradford  had  called  me  into  his  cabin  one  morning  and 
told  me  that  Janasuki  had  gone  ashore  the  day  before 
with  his  permission,  but  had  not  returned,  and  that  he 
wished  that  I  would  offer  a  reward  for  Janasuki 's  appre 
hension  by  the  police.  An  hour  later  he  sent  for  me 
again,  and  showed  me  a  letter  which  he  had  received  from 
a  hospital  in  Norfolk,  saying  that  Janasuki  was  there  for 
treatment  for  nervous  shock;  that  Janasuki  had  gone  to 
a  dentist  the  day  before,  and  had  twenty-four  teeth  ex 
tracted. 

Janasuki  appeared  on  board  in  about  three  days  with 
out  any  teeth.  On  being  asked  why  he  had  all  his  teeth 
taken  out,  he  said  that  his  teeth  were  somewhat  irregular, 
and  he  thought  that  artificial  teeth  would  look  better. 

Janasuki  got  an  entire  new  set  of  teeth,  but  it  took  him 
some  time  to  get  used  to  them.  During  the  time  when  he 
was  accustoming  himself  to  them,  he  used  to  wear  his 
false  teeth  on  dress  occasions.  Shortly  after  Bradford 
left,  I  found  Janasuki  reading  Emerson's  essays.  I  told 
him  that  this  showed  good  taste,  but  that  I  might  be  able 
to  find  him  a  book  that  would  be  more  interesting  to  him; 
and  I  got  him  Kipling's  "Plain  Tales  from  the  Hills." 
A  few  days  afterward,  I  asked  him  which  book  he  liked 
the  better.  Janasuki  answered  in  his  precise  fashion 
as  follows: 

''Sir,  I  think  that  the  book  of  Mr.  Kipling  is  more 
exciting  to  the  mind,  but  that  the  book  of  Mr.  Emerson 
is  more  stimulating  to  the  soul;  and  I  think  that  I  need 
to  have  my  soul  stimulated  more  than  I  do  to  have  my 
mind  excited."  Some  months  afterward,  when  I  took 


384     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

command  of  the  monitor  Arkansas,  I  took  Janasuki  with 
me,  for  he  was  a  capable  and  careful  servant.  I  went  on 
a  few  days'  leave  at  one  time,  and  when  I  returned  to 
the  Arkansas  I  was  told  that  Janasuki  was  missing,  but 
that  he  had  left  a  letter  for  me.  I  found  this  letter  to  be 
a  carefully  written  one,  covering  seven  pages  of  foolscap, 
nearly  all  of  which  was  taken  up  with  a  discussion  of 
the  ethics  of  desertion.  His  conclusion,  which  was  stated 
on  the  next  to  the  last  line  of  his  letter,  was  that  it  would 
be  wrong  for  him  to  desert.  The  last  line,  was  '  *  Never 
theless,  I  am  going  to  desert. " 

I  have  often  wondered  who  Janasuki  was  and  what 
became  of  him.  I  found  out  one  day,  from  a  probably 
careless  remark  from  him,  that  he  was  an  engineer  by 
profession ;  but  I  was  unable  to  learn  whether  he  was  a 
highly  educated  engineer  or  an  upper-grade  mechanic. 
He  was  a  man  of  fine  mind,  and  was  probably  engaged 
on  the  work  he  was  then  performing  with  some  ulterior 
purpose  in  view. 

My  wife  and  daughter  were  at  Bar  Harbor,  and  we 
had  a  pleasant  time  for  a  few  days.  At  the  end  of  that 
time  I  received  orders  to  assume  command  of  a  temporary 
fifth  division  of  the  Atlantic  fleet,  consisting  of  the  ships 
that  had  constituted  Admiral  Bradford's  squadron,  and 
to  proceed  with  them  to  join  the  flag  of  Rear-Admiral 
Evans,  then  anchored  in  Long  Island  Sound,  in  readiness 
for  an  approaching  review  by  President  Roosevelt  at 
Oyster  Bay.  As  Admiral  Bradford's  staff  had  gone  with 
him,  I  had  to  organize  a  temporary  staff  in  a  hurry,  and 
get  ready  to  manceuver  my  division  under  the  eye  of  the 
Commander  in  Chief.  I  did  not  look  forward  to  the 
work  with  much  pleasure;  but  I  got  through  it  without 
making  any  mistakes,  much  to  my  relief. 

About  this  time  it  was  frequently  remarked  that  Mr. 
Roosevelt  was  abnormally  favored  by  good  luck.  Cer 
tainly  he  was  so  favored  on  the  day  of  his  review.  By 
the  program,  he  was  to  embark  in  a  small  tug  at  eleven 
o'clock  and  go  on  board  the  Mayflower,  and  the  May- 


COMMANDING  THE  MINNEAPOLIS         385 

flower  was  then  to  steam  past  the  fleet,  down  on  one  side 
and  back  on  the  other ;  while  all  the  officers  and  enlisted 
men  were  to  stand  on  deck  at  attention  and  salute  as  he 
went  by,  the  guns  of  each  ship  firing  the  national  salute 
of  twenty-one  guns.  As  everybody  had  to  be  in  full  dress 
uniform,  and  the  ships  had  to  be  dressed  with  flags,  we 
were  much  concerned  the  following  morning  at  seeing  a 
depressing  light  fog,  with  a  southerly  wind  and  a  driz 
zling  rain,  and  no  indication  of  any  change.  Neverthe 
less,  at  ten  o'clock  I  offered  to  bet  ten  dollars  with  the 
executive  officer  of  the  ship  that  the  weather  would  clear 
by  eleven;  but  he  answered  that  he  was  afraid  to  bet 
against  the  President's  luck.  I  then  offered  to  bet  with 
the  navigator  and  other  officers,  but  received  the  same 
reply.  About  five  minutes  before  eleven,  the  weather 
suddenly  cleared,  and  it  remained  clear  for  the  rest  of 
the  day. 

After  the  review,  which  was  held  on  the  twenty-fifth 
of  September,  1906,  my  division  was  disbanded,  and  the 
Minneapolis  was  sent  to  the  Philadelphia  navy-yard  to 
get  ready  to  go  to  Cuba,  where  conditions  were  exceed 
ingly  disturbed.  Our  work  at  Philadelphia  was  hurried 
along,  and  on  its  completion  I  received  orders  to  proceed 
to  Havana  with  all  despatch. 

On  September  20,  1906,  the  Minneapolis,  was  off  the 
coast  of  North  Carolina,  proceeding  from  Philadelphia 
to  Havana  at  sixteen  knots  speed.  We  had  left  the  Phil 
adelphia  Navy- Yard  two  days  before,  with  two  battalions 
of  marines  and  their  camp  equipage,  because  a  revolt  was 
imminent  in  Cuba,  and  the  United  States  intended  to 
prevent  it.  Marines  and  soldiers  of  the  regular  army 
were  ordered  to  Cuba  in  large  numbers  and  with  great 
despatch.  The  marines,  of  course,  got  off  first,  and  those 
on  board  the  Minneapolis  were  the  first  detachment.  We 
had  four  hundred  of  them,  and  these,  in  addition  to  the 
regular  crew  of  the  ship,  made  somewhat  over  eight  hun 
dred  souls  on  board. 

Shortly  before  we  left  Philadelphia  there  had  been  a 


386     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

cyclone  to  the  southward ;  but  this  had  subsided,  and  the 
weather  on  September  the  twentieth  was  clear  and  pleas 
ant,  the  only  reminder  of  the  cyclone  being  a  smooth  and 
heavy  swell. 

I  turned  in  about  half  past  ten  that  evening.  About 
eleven  o'clock  I  was  awakened  from  a  sound  sleep  by  a 
vigorous  rapping  at  my  door  and  a  voice  calling: 

" Captain,  Captain." 

"Well!" 

''Man  overboard,  sir." 

"Man  overboard?"  I  inquired  drowsily. 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Very  well;  I  '11  go  on  deck." 

By  this  time  I  was  sufficiently  roused  to  realize  that 
the  night  was  so  warm  that  I  need  not  put  on  any  warm 
clothing,  and  that  the  gold  braid  on  my  cap  visor  would 
be  sufficient  identification  on  deck.  So  I  simply  put  on 
my  cap,  and  went  up  on  the  quarter-deck  with  no  other 
clothing  than  my  pajamas. 

When  I  got  on  the  quarter-deck  the  great  darkness  pre 
vented  my  seeing  anything  at  first.  But  in  a  few  mo 
ments  my  eyes  became  sufficiently  accustomed  to  the 
darkness  to  enable  me  to  see  that  the  two  life-boats,  which 
hung  on  each  side  of  the  quarter-deck,  were  already 
manned;  and  that  what  remained  of  the  quarter-deck 
where  lumber  was  not  stowed,  was  covered  with  officers  of 
the  ship  and  marine  officers,  who,  though  perfectly  quiet, 
had  the  air  of  being  astonished  at  something. 

Just  then  the  executive  officer,  Lieutenant-Commander 
Stanworth,  came  up  and  said: 

"Sir,  we  do  not  yet  know  exactly  what  has  happened. 
I  don't  think  any  man  has  fallen  overboard  from  the 
ship ;  but  the  sergeant  of  the  guard  says  he  heard  a  man 
calling  for  help  from  the  water. ' ' 

"But  the  ship  has  not  been  stopped,"  I  said;  "I  hear 
the  engines  going  now." 

"No,  sir,"  he  answered,  "the  officer  of  the  deck  put 
his  helm  hard  aport  and  headed  back. ' ' 


COMMANDING  THE  MINNEAPOLIS        387 

I  sent  an  order  to  the  officer  of  the  deck  to  stop  the 
ship,  and  head  her  in  the  direction  we  had  come  from, 
and  to  turn  on  both  search-lights,  and  search  in  every 
direction.  I  interrogated  Mr.  Stanworth  further,  but 
found  that  he  knew  no  more  of  the  situation  than  he  had 
already  told  me. 

There  were  a  great  number  of  officers  congregated  near, 
and  I  gathered  from  their  remarks  that  they  were  thor 
oughly  mystified.  I  asked  some  of  them  if  they  could 
give  me  any  information  as  to  what  had  happened,  and 
none  of  them  could;  but  they  all  thought  that  whoever 
heard  the  cry  for  help  was  suffering  from  delusion,  be 
cause,  as  one  of  them  said,  how  could  there  be  anybody 
out  here  on  the  ocean  at  night,  more  than  fifty  miles  from 
shore?  I  then  told  Mr.  Stanworth  that  I  would  go  on 
the  bridge,  and  that  I  wished  him  to  accompany  me.  I 
directed  Ensign  Howe  to  take  charge  of  one  life-boat  and 
Ensign  McCommon  of  the  other,  and  to  be  ready  to  go  in 
search  of  the  man,  but  not  to  lower  the  boats  until  or 
dered. 

On  my  way  forward  to  the  bridge,  which  in  a  ship  four 
hundred  and  ten  feet  long  took  some  time,  I  found  the 
deck  full  of  people  conversing  in  subdued  tones.  They 
all  stopped  talking  as  I  went  by,  but  I  could  gather  from 
stray  remarks  that  they  were  more  than  incredulous  as 
to  there  having  been  any  cry  for  help ;  and  I  heard  such 
expressions  as,  "Oh,  the  sergeant  's  got  rats";  "He  's 
a  -  — ,"  etc.,  all  along  the  decks. 

On  my  way  forward  the  sudden  realization  came  to 
me  that  I  was  in  command  of  a  ship  sent  on  urgent  duty 
at  a  critical  time,  and  that  I  was  headed  in  the  wrong 
direction. 

When  I  got  on  the  bridge  the  officer  of  the  deck  saluted 
and  said: 

"Good  evening,  Captain." 

"Good  evening,  Mr.  Cooper.     What  has  happened?" 

1 1 1  don 't  know  exactly,  sir ;  but  a  few  minutes  ago  the 
sergeant  of  the  guard,  who  is  a  very  reliable  man,  ran  up 


388     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

here  and  reported  that  he  heard  a  man  overboard  in  the 
water.  So  I  put  the  helm  hard  aport  and  headed  back, 
and  now  I  Ve  got  the  ship  stopped,  according  to  your 
orders.  I  've  got  both  search-lights  turned  on,  also,  sir." 

"So  the  ship  's  stopped,  and  you  are  headed  back  in 
the  direction  you  came  from!" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Where  's  the  sergeant  of  the  guard  who  made  this 
report?" 

"Here,  sir."  The  sergeant  stepped  forward  out  of 
the  darkness,  saluted,  and  stood  at  attention. 

"Now,  Sergeant,  tell  me  the  whole  story." 

"Well,  sir,  it  had  just  gone  six  bells,  and  I  was  stand 
ing  by  the  port  rail  of  the  superstructure-deck,  about 
half-way  forward,  talking  to  the  chief  carpenter's  mate. 
All  on  a  sudden  I  heard  a  man  right  under  me,  like  he  was 
right  close  to  the  ship,  call  out,  '  Help ! '  I  heard  him  as 
plain  as  I  ever  heard  anything  in  my  life,  sir.  So  I  said 
to  the  carpenter's  mate,  'Did  you  hear  that  man  call— 
"Help"?'  'No,'  he  said.  Just  then  I  heard  him  call 
again  just  the  same  as  before,  only  not  so  loud,  as  if  the 
ship  had  gone  by  him  a  little.  '  God  Almighty ! '  said  the 
carpenter's  mate, — those  are  the  words  he  used,  sir, — 'I 
heard  him  that  time. '  Then  I  ran  up  to  the  officer  of  the 
deck  as  fast  I  could,  sir,  and  told  him  just  what  I  told 
you,  sir.  That  is  all  I  know  about  it,  sir;  but  here  's 
the  carpenter's  mate,  sir,  and  he  '11  tell  you  the  same  as 
I  do." 

"Carpenter's  mate." 

"Yes,  sir";  and  another  man  came  forward  and 
saluted. 

' '  Did  you  hear  any  man  call,  '  Help '  from  the  water  ? ' ' 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Are  you  sure?" 

"Positive,  sir." 

The  sergeant  and  the  carpenter's  mate  were  evidently 
sober,  and  they  were  perfectly  calm.  I  endeavored  to 
impress  them  with  the  seriousness  of  turning  back  a  ship 


COMMANDING  THE  MINNEAPOLIS        389 

bound  on  urgent  duty;  but  they  both  assured  me  with  the 
utmost  earnestness  that  they  had  heard  the  cry;  and  I 
became  convinced  that  they  were  at  least  sincere. 

Then  I  figured  out  on  a  piece  of  paper  the  most  prob 
able  direction  of  the  man  at  the  present  time,  and  or 
dered  the  officer  of  the  deck  to  head  in  that  direction, 
and  go  at  a  very  slow  speed,  also  to  train  one  search 
light  in  a  direction  which  I  indicated  and  the  other  in 
another  given  direction;  but  first  to  lower  the  life-boats, 
and  order  Howe  and  McCommon  to  pull  just  outside  of 
the  search-light  beams. 

Then  Mr.  Stanworth  and  I  stood  together  on  the  port 
side  of  the  bridge,  with  our  night  glasses,  looking  in  what 
we  considered  the  most  probable  direction  in  which  to 
pick  up  the  man,  supposing  there  was  one. 

Before  this  time  the  men  had  been  mustered  at  quar 
ters,  and  it  had  been  definitely  ascertained  that  no  one 
had  fallen  overboard. 

"What  do  you  think  of  this,  Stanworth?" 

"I  don't  know  quite  what  to  think  of  it,  Captain.  I 
don't  see  how  a  man  could  be  overboard  out  here.  My 
father  was  a  pilot,  and  I  have  been  among  seafaring 
people  all  my  life,  and  I  think  I  Ve  read  nearly  all  the 
sea-stories  there  are.  I  never  heard  of  such  a  thing, 
but  the  men  seem  to  be  absolutely  sure  they  heard  a  cry 
for  help." 

"I  know,  but  it  seems  more  probable  to  me  that  there 
should  be  a  ventriloquist  on  board  than  that  there  should 
be  a  man  alone  out  here  on  the  ocean. ' ' 

"By  George!"  said  Stanworth,  "I  never  thought  of 
that." 

When  Stanworth  said,  "By  George,"  which  was  the 
closest  approximation  to  profanity  that  he  allowed  him 
self,  I  knew  that  he  was  roused  from  the  condition  of 
imperturbability  in  which  he  habitually  lived,  and  I  en 
joyed  the  occasion  accordingly. 

The  events  thus  far  narrated  occupied  about  half  an 
hour ;  that  is,  until  about  seven  bells,  or  half -past  eleven. 


390     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Up  to  this  time  the  rapid  succession  of  impressions  kept 
me  interested  and  kept  my  faith  alive;  but  as  the  mo 
ments  wore  on,  and  the  search-lights  brought  out  noth 
ing  but  the  water,  which  they  illuminated  in  greenish- 
white  streaks,  I  began  to  doubt  more  and  more  the  wisdom 
of  my  action. 

About  fifteen  minutes  before  twelve  Stanworth  said  in 
his  quiet  voice: 

"I  think  I  see  something,  sir." 

"Where?" 

' '  Near  the  left  side  of  the  beam  of  the  forward  search 
light." 

I  trained  my  glass  in  that  direction,  but  could  see 
nothing.  Just  then  the  search-light  moved  a  little  to  the 
left,  and  through  my  night  glass  I  thought  I  saw  a  little 
white  projection  sticking  above  water  about  two  points 
on  the  port  bow. 

"I  think  I  see  something,  too." 

In  a  few  minutes  everybody  on  deck  saw  it. 

* '  What  is  it  ? "  came  from  men  scattered  all  about  the 
decks. 

For  some  time,  perhaps  five  minutes,  but  it  seemed 
much  longer,  nothing  could  be  made  out  of  this  curious 
little  white  elevation. 

"I  think  it  's  moving,  whatever  it  is,"  said  Stanworth. 

'  '  It  seems  to  me, ' '  continued  Stanworth,  speaking  very 
slowly,  '  *  that  it  moves  from  right  to  left  and  back  again, 
like  a  pendulum  upside  down." 

;'Yes,  I  think  you  're  right,"  I  said,  and  I  directed 
the  officer  of  the  deck  to  head  the  ship  toward  the  object 
at  very  low  speed. 

The  object  seemed  to  be  quite  small,  and  it  evidently 
did  not  move  with  the  undulation  of  the  sea.  Its  move 
ment  had  not  the  same  period ;  it  was  quicker.  It  seemed 
to  me  as  if  it  must  be  either  a  man  who  was  moving 
from  side  to  side,  or  else  something  that  was  moved  by 
some  kind  of  engine.  The  movement  was  perfectly  regu 
lar. 


COMMANDING  THE  MINNEAPOLIS        391 

"By  George!  sir,"  exclaimed  Stanworth,  "I  believe 
it  's  a  man  using  a  paddle !  Now,  watch,  and  see  if  you 
don't  see  the  paddle  pretty  soon.  You  see,  if  a  man  was 
in  a  little  boat  paddling,  that  is  exactly  the  way  his 
body  would  swing  from  right  to  left." 

"Yes,  Stanworth,  I  think  you  're  right,  except  that 
there  is  n  't  any  boat.  The  searchlight  's  on  the  thing 
full  tilt;  and  if  there  were  a  boat,  we  'd  see  it." 

1  'Yes,"  assented  Stanworth,  "that  is  what  perplexes 
me ;  but  I  think  we  shall  have  a  solution  of  the  mystery 
pretty  soon.  I  see  our  boats  pulling  for  the  thing,  what 
ever  it  is." 

I  looked,  and  there  were  our  two  life-boats  racing,  with 
all  the  vim  and  precision  that  was  in  them,  for  the  prize. 
One  boat  got  a  little  ahead  of  the  other,  and  soon  we  saw 
the  white  object  lifted  into  one  of  the  boats.  Then  both 
boats  pulled  for  the  ship. 

The  men  were  sent  aft  to  man  the  life-boats'  falls,  and 
I  sent  word  to  Surgeon  Lumsden  that  I  thought  we  had 
picked  up  a  man,  and  for  him  to  be  prepared  to  receive 
him  in  the  sick-bay.  Then  I  went  aft  on  the  quarter 
deck.  Both  boats  soon  neared  the  ship;  and  in  one  of 
them  was  a  man,  in  dark  clothes,  sitting  in  the  stern 
sheets.  I  hailed  the  boat  and  asked  if  the  man  was 
badly  hurt,  and  the  man  himself  replied: 

"No  sir;  I  'm  all  right." 

By  this  time  the  surgeon  had  joined  me  on  the  quarter 
deck  and  said: 

"Before  receiving  the  man  in  the  sick-bay,  sir,  I  should 
like  to  examine  him  and  see  if  he  has  any  contagious  or 
infectious  disease." 

' '  Very  well,  Doctor ;  I  '11  have  the  man  brought  here, 
and  you  may  examine  him  as  you  think  best.  I  '11  not 
interfere." 

The  boat  was  hoisted  level  with  the  deck,  and  the  man 
was  passed  out,  and  carried  forward  by  two  stout  sailors, 
and  brought  before  the  surgeon. 

"Can  you  stand  up!"  said  the  surgeon. 


392     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

"Yes,  sir,"  said  the  man;  and  at  a  sign  from  me,  the 
two  men  put  him  on  his  feet  and  let  him  stand  up.  He 
was  a  man  of  middle  size,  with  a  short  brown  beard ;  ap 
parently  about  thirty-five  years  old.  He  had  on  a  shirt 
and  a  pair  of  trousers. 

"Have  you  any  contagious  or  infectious  disease?" 
said  the  surgeon. 

"No,  sir." 

The  doctor  put  his  hand  on  his  pulse  and  said : 

"Open  your  mouth."  The  man  opened  his  mouth, 
and  it  looked  healthy  except  that  his  tongue  was  swollen. 

"How  long  have  you  been  in  the  water?"  said  the 
surgeon. 

"Nearly  three  days,  sir." 

"How  long  since  you  Ve  had  any  food?" 

"Just  three  days  ago  to-night,  sir." 

"How  long  since  you  Ve  had  any  water?" 

"Same  time,  sir." 

* '  Do  you  feel  any  special  pain  or  distress  in  any  part  of 
your  body?" 

* '  Well,  I  feel  pretty  tired,  but  I  'm  all  right, ' '  was  the 
sturdy  reply. 

He  was  carried  below,  and  I  shall  never  forget  the  feel 
ing  of  admiration  with  which  I  looked  at  this  man,  so  calm 
and  self-possessed  after  passing  through  such  an  ordeal. 
In  my  experience  I  have  never  known  his  nerve  to  be 
equaled. 

About  an  hour  later  the  surgeon  reported  that  the 
rescued  man  was  now  asleep,  and  that  he  thought  that 
there  was  nothing  the  matter  with  him  except  that  the 
flesh  of  his  arms  and  thighs  was  greatly  lacerated. 

The  next  day  I  went  down  to  the  sick-bay  and  found 
him  lying  in  a  cot.  He  put  out  his  hand  and  said  to  me 
in  a  cordial,  but  matter-of-fact,  tone : 

"I  'm  very  much  obliged  to  you  for  saving  me,  Cap 
tain." 

"  I  'm  very  glad  to  have  saved  you ;  we  sailors  have  to 
do  these  things  for  each  other  now  and  then." 


Then,  in  reply  to  a  question,  he  told  me  that  his  name 
was  George  Olsen,  and  that  he  had  been  first  mate  of 
the  schooner  Twilight,  bound  from  Charleston  to  some 
Northern  port.  On  Monday  they  had  been  caught  in 
the  cyclone,  but  had  managed  to  get  some  supper  Mon 
day  night.  About  six  o'clock  Tuesday  morning  the 
schooner  had  been  thrown  on  her  beam-ends,  so  that  her 
masts  rested  on  the  water.  The  masts  almost  imme 
diately  broke  in  two,  and  the  schooner  went  bottom  up. 
He  himself  was  thrown  out  violently  into  the  water,  with 
a  great  deal  of  lumber  with  which  the  schooner  was 
laden.  This  lumber  was  hurled  about  by  the  waves,  and 
he  thought  that  the  other  men  were  probably  killed  by 
the  lumber  at  that  time.  He,  however,  managed  to  get 
clear  of  the  wreckage.  He  then  got  hold  of  two  boards, 
and  supported  himself  by  putting  his  arms  over  them. 
He  had  on  a  pair  of  thick  rubber  boots,  a  heavy  oilskin 
coat,  and  a  sou'wester. 

He  remained  in  this  position  twenty-four  hours.  At 
the  end  of  that  time  the  violence  of  the  sea  had  dimin 
ished.  He  then  took  the  two  boards  and  placed  them  in 
the  form  of  a  cross,  and  lashed  them  together  at  the 
cross  with  a  sort  of  rope,  and  made  by  tearing  his  oil 
skin  coat  into  strips  and  tying  them  together.  He  then 
sat  astride  of  this  cross,  and  found  a  small  piece  of  wood, 
which  he  used  as  a  paddle.  While  in  this  position,  he  saw 
the  smoke  of  several  steamers,  but  could  not  make  the 
people  on  board  see  him.  Finally,  on  Thursday  night,  he 
saw  the  white,  green,  and  red  lights  of  a  steamer  coming 
toward  him  very  fast.  He  paddled  as  hard  as  he  could 
until  he  got  directly  in  front  of  her ;  then,  as  she  got  very 
near,  he  paddled  out  just  clear  of  her  course,  and  yelled 
for  help  with  all  his  might. 

"And  pretty  soon,"  he  said  simply,  "I  saw  the  ship 
turn  around,  and  then  I  knew  I  was  all  right." 

I  kept  Olsen  on  board  a  month  until  his  flesh  had  healed. 
Then  we  got  up  a  subscription  in  the  ship,  and  he  went 
home  to  his  wife  and  family  in  Sweden. 


394     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Our  stay  in  Havana  was  pleasant,  but  one  night  we 
had  an  uncomfortable  experience.  I  had  gone  ashore 
in  the  afternoon  for  a  walk,  and  on  my  return  at  about 
five  o'clock  had  been  informed  by  the  executive  officer 
that  telegraphic  information  had  been  received  that  a 
hurricane  was  coming  rapidly,  that  the  wind  was  already 
beginning  to  rise,  and  that  he  had  ordered  steam  in  all 
boilers  and  taken  other  measures. 

The  wind  increased  very  rapidly,  and  by  eight  o  'clock 
it  was  raining  heavily,  and  a  tremendous  gale  was  blow 
ing.  As  there  were  a  number  of  ships  in  the  harbor,  quite 
close  together,  and  as  I  knew  that  the  direction  of  the 
wind  would  change  rapidly  as  the  center  of  the  storm 
approached,  and  that  we  should  have  very  little  distance 
between  our  stern  and  a  shoal  when  the  wind  got  to  the 
southeast  point,  I  kept  men  at  the  engine  telegraphs, 
ready  to  signal  orders  to  the  engine-rooms  below.  But 
as  I  appreciated  the  danger  of  using  the  main  engines 
when  lying  at  anchor  in  a  gale,  though  it  sometimes  has 
to  be  done,  I  was  naturally  anxious. 

I  stood  on  the  bridge  till  daylight,  watching  the  storm, 
noting  how  the  wind  got  higher,  the  rain  denser,  the 
thunder  louder,  and  the  lightning  more  vivid,  when  sud 
denly  everything  seemed  to  come  to  a  climax  with  a 
tremendous  peal  of  thunder,  an  intense  flash  of  lightning, 
and  a  blow  on  top  of  my  head  that  threw  me  down  on  my 
hands  and  knees  on  the  bridge.  I  did  not  lose  con 
sciousness,  and  I  soon  got  to  my  feet  and  to  a  realization 
of  what  had  happened.  Almost  exactly  on  the  stroke  of 
two  bells,  or  one  o  'clock,  when  the  wind  rose  to  its  high 
est  shriek,  a  little  awning  over  our  heads,  which  had  been 
forgotten,  was  blown  away,  and  a  short  beam  of  wood 
about  six  feet  long  had  been  broken  from  its  fastenings, 
and  thrown  down  on  my  head. 

The  hurricane  slowly  subsided  after  one  o  'clock,  as  its 
center  passed  away  from  us,  and  by  eight  o  'clock  the  next 
morning  the  weather  was  beautiful  in  every  way;  the 
wind  still  fresh,  but  rapidly  decreasing  in  force,  as  the 


COMMANDING  THE  MINNEAPOLIS        395 

center  of  the  cyclone  speeded  farther  and  farther  away. 
The  authorities  in  Havana  declared  later  that  this  was 
one  of  the  most  violent  hurricanes  that  had  ever  passed 
over  the  city,  though,  like  all  violent  hurricanes,  it  had 
been  brief.  They  could  not  tell  what  the  velocity  of  the 
wind  was,  because  all  the  instruments  for  measuring  the 
wind  had  blown  away.  Great  damage  had  been  done. 
Nearly  one  third  of  the  trees  had  been  wholly  or  partly 
destroyed;  lightning-rods  had  been  bent  at  right  angles, 
a  thing  I  had  never  seen  before  and  have  never  since. 
All  over  Havana  the  wind  broke  windows  and  forced 
rain  into  shops  and  dwelling-houses,  and  did  tremendous 
damage  to  furniture  and  upholstery.  It  was  said  that 
everybody  who  owned  anything  lost  something  that  night. 
In  the  early  part  of  October  the  situation  in  Cuba 
became  adjusted  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  United  States, 
mainly  by  the  clear  head  and  purpose  of  President  Koose- 
velt,  who  acted  through  Mr.  Taft,  whom  he  had  made 
temporary  governor-general.  The  Minneapolis  was  then 
ordered  to  Philadelphia  to  go  out  of  commission;  and  I 
was  ordered  to  take  command  of  the  monitor  Arkansas, 
then  at  anchor  in  the  Severn  Eiver,  off  the  Naval 
Academy,  at  Annapolis. 


CHAPTER  XXVII 

COMMANDING   A   MONITOE 

THE  change  from  the  Minneapolis  to  the  Arkansas 
was  great,  because  the  difference  between  the  two 
vessels  was  radical.  The  Minneapolis  was  a  long,  nar 
row,  deep,  fast,  lightly  built  cruiser;  the  Arkansas  was 
a  short,  broad,  shallow,  slow,  heavily  armored  coast-de 
fence  monitor,  sometimes  irreverently  called  a  " flat- 
iron."  As  my  promotion  would  be  due  in  about  eight 
months,  I  foresaw  that  I  should  spend  the  winter  and 
spring  in  Annapolis  taking  the  midshipmen  out  for  short 
trips  in  Chesapeake  Bay,  and  that  the  Arkansas  would 
be  one  of  the  ships  in  the  practice  squadron  the  following 
summer. 

Monitors  have  always  been  hard  to  handle,  and  moni 
tors  like  the  Arkansas  were  specially  so,  because  they 
had  inturning  propellers,  a  joint  invention  of  engineers 
and  the  devil,  which  is  no  longer  allowed  to  exist  and  vex 
the  souls  of  naval  officers.  Naturally,  I  was  a  little 
anxious  on  my  first  trip,  and  especially  at  the  end  of 
the  trip,  when  I  was  steaming  up  to  the  buoy  to  which 
we  were  to  make  fast.  There  was  no  danger  to  be  ap 
prehended,  but  there  was  a  fine  chance  of  doing  a  clumsy 
and  unseaman-like  piece  of  work.  But  I  steamed  right 
up  to  the  buoy  and  made  fast  to  it  as  perfectly  as  any 
body  could  have  done.  Naturally,  I  patted  myself  on 
the  back  and  said  to  myself,  "  These  things  are  easy 
enough  to  do  if  you  only  know  how."  I  subsequently 
found  that  I  should  not  have  complimented  my  skill, 
but  should  have  thanked  my  luck;  because  I  was  never 
able  to  do  it  so  well  again,  even  after  I  had  had  a  good 
deal  of  practice.  Human  beings  are  much  the  same :  we 

396 


COMMANDING  A  MONITOR  397 

attribute  our  successes  to  our  skill,  and  our  failures  to 
our  luck. 

The  Arkansas  stayed  at  Annapolis  until  the  following 
June,  spending  the  coldest  months  of  the  winter  along 
side  of  the  dock  at  the  Naval  Academy.  We  stayed  out 
in  the  stream  at  anchor  until  it  became  dangerous  to  stay 
there  any  longer,  on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  com 
municating  with  the  shore  by  reason  of  the  ice.  The 
incident  that  finally  decided  that  it  was  time  to  move 
in  was  rather  curious.  A  thin  film  of  ice  was  on  the 
water,  and  when  the  steam  launch  returned  from  an 
early  trip  ashore,  it  was  found  that  this  film  of  ice  had 
acted  like  a  knife  to  the  steam  launch,  and  cut  a  score 
which  was  nearly  half  an  inch  deep  and  about  an  eighth 
of  an  inch  wide  half  the  distance  from  the  bow  to  the 
stern. 

The  following  winter  was  extremely  pleasant  in  many 
ways,  but  exceedingly  dull  from  a  professional  point  of 
view,  I  had  very  little  to  do  personally,  and  so  I  decided 
to  write  another  essay  in  competition  for  the  prize  and  to 
call  my  essay  "The  Naval  Profession." 

My  idea  was  to  point  out  that  the  navy  (and  also  the 
army)  was  not  merely  an  organization  like  political 
business  or  social  organizations;  but  that  it  was  an  or 
ganization  more  like  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  be 
cause  its  members  were  members  not  only  of  an  organ 
ization,  but  also  of  a  profession;  and  that  that  profes 
sion  was  as  distinctly  a  profession  as  was  that  of  medi 
cine,  law,  or  the  church.  It  followed  from  this  that  the 
activities  of  the  navy  must  be  directed  according  to  the 
principles  of  the  profession,  if  they  were  to  be  directed 
aright;  and  that  they  must  be  directed  aright,  if  the 
navy  was  to  do  what  it  was  paid  to  do  by  the  people. 

This  essay,  like  the  previous  essay,  led  up  to  the 
necessity  for  a  general  staff,  and  pointed  out  the  dan 
gerous  absurdities  of  the  system  by  which  the  navy  was 
then  administered.  One  of  the  paragraphs  was  as  fol 
lows: 


398     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

The  naval  profession  now  covers  a  very  wide  field  in  both 
its  military  and  its  engineering  phases ;  and  this  field  is  increas 
ing  so  rapidly  that  it  is  impossible  for  any  one  officer  to  man 
age  it.  And  yet  the  Secretary  is  expected  not  only  to  master 
it,  but  to  make  decisions  on  the  most  difficult  questions  imme 
diately  after  he  takes  his  seat.  A  civilian  with  the  natural  genius 
of  Napoleon  could  not  do  this  wisely;  unless  he  had  counsel 
which  was  complete  and  correct,  and  so  authoritative  as  to 
be  a  warrant  for  acting  on  it. 

It  was  then  pointed  out  that  a  general  staff  was  the 
only  kind  of  body  that  would  be  competent  to  give  such 
counsel. 

But  while  the  main  purpose  of  my  essay  was  to  point 
out  the  absolute  necessity  for  having  a  general  staff 
which  should  direct  the  navy  as  a  whole  to  the  fulfil 
ment  of  its  purpose,  almost  equal  stress  was  laid  on  the 
ultra-conservatism  of  the  navy,  especially  in  the  matter 
of  mechanism.  Many  instances  of  excessive  slowness  in 
adopting  good  ideas  were  mentioned,  some  of  which  were 
drawn  from  my  own  experience.  One  of  the  important 
divisions  of  the  paper  was  headed  by  the  words  "Neces 
sity  for  Keeping  Mechanism  up  to  Date."  After  dis 
cussing  this  question  for  ten  pages,  the  next  division  was 
reached,  which  was  headed  " Proposed  Remedy."  At 
the  beginning  of  this  division  was  the  sentence,  "The 
remedy  is  easy  to  find,  because  it  has  been  found 
already  by  the  large  industrial  concerns."  After  a  few 
sentences  devoted  to  explaining  this,  the  essay  con 
tinued  : 

* '  The  remedy  found  by  the  great  industrial  concern  is 
simply  that  of  recognizing  affirmatively  the  necessity  of 
having  up  to  date  contrivances,  and  of  establishing  an 
experimental  department,  whose  business  is  not  only 
to  improve  on  old  appliances  and  invent  new  ones,  but 
to  examine  all  schemes  submitted  by  outside  inventors, 
and  test  such  as  seem  to  be  worthy  of  testing." 

After  discussing  this,  and  pointing  out  how  the  ex 
perimentalists  in  an  industrial  concern  correspond  to  the 


COMMANDING  A  MONITOR  399 

readers  in  a  publishing  house,  the  next  paragraph  fol 
lowed  : 

But  how  could  such  a  scheme  be  adapted  to  the  navy?  It 
could  be,  by  recognizing  affirmatively  the  value  of  keeping  up 
with  the  times  and  by  recognizing,  further,  that  this,  like  many 
other  necessary  things,  is  hard  to  do,  and  that  something  must  be 
sacrificed,  to  do  it.  The  experimental  departments  of  the  in 
dustrial  concerns  cost  a  great  deal  of  money,  and  complicate 
the  organization,  and  take  away  the  services  of  the  best  work 
men;  but  nevertheless,  they  are  kept  up,  and  they  are  rising 
in  importance  from  year  to  year.  So,  with  the  navy,  if  we 
start  what  would  correspond  to  an  experimental  department,  we 
must  prepare  to  spend  a  great  deal  of  time,  money  and  brain 
work  on  it,  and  expect  to  find  it  a  bother  in  many  ways. 

It  will  be  seen  that  this  experimental  department  was 
substantially  the  same  thing,  or  fulfilled  the  same  func 
tions,  as  the  Invention  and  Experiment  Board  which 
I  suggested  to  the  secretary  of  the  navy  in  1915. 

Another  part  of  the  paper  was  devoted  to  pointing  out 
a  fact  that  was  not  realized  then,  and  which  I  amplified 
later  in  other  essays,  that  naval  power,  like  military 
power,  is  essentially  mechanical,  that  ships  can  carry 
weapons  and  engines  much  more  powerful  than  soldiers 
can,  and  that  navies  can  therefore  exert  much  more  de 
structive  power  than  armies  can.  One  of  the  divi 
sions  of  the  paper  was  headed  "  Battleships  More  Power 
ful  than  Armies. ' '  One  of  the  sentences  in  this  division 
read: 

It  is  well  to  note  that  the  sole  reason  for  having  an  organized 
army  instead  of  an  undisciplined  horde  of  men,  is  that  an  army 
organized,  drilled,  and  equipped  is,  because  it  is  organized, 
drilled,  and  equipped,  a  machine  possessing  a  vast  amount  of 
energy  which  can  be  directed  to  a  definite  object,  better  than  an 
undisciplined  horde  of  men  can;  and  it  may  be  further  pointed 
out  that  the  reasoning  above  proves  that  our  projected  battle 
ship  will  be  a  machine  of  a  higher  order,  possessing  in  her  gun 
fire  a  greater  amount  of  concentratable  energy  than  an  army  of 
123,000  men. 


400     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

This  essay  got  the  third  prize,  the  second  honorable 
mention.  In  my  humble  opinion  this  essay  was  as  good 
as  my  previous  one :  I  think  it  was  better  from  the  point 
of  view  of  originality,  but  inferior  in  its  construction. 
Its  principal  fault  was  in  bringing  in  a  number  of  mat 
ters  that  were  not  pertinent  to  the  essay.  This  not  only 
made  the  essay  unduly  long,  but  it  occasioned  a  lack 
of  unity  and  directness.  There  were  two  distinct  essays 
instead  of  one.  If  the  essay  had  been  divided  into  two 
essays,  one  called  "The  Naval  Profession"  and  the 
other  called  "Naval  Strategy,"  both  essays  would  have 
been  better  than  the  one  actually  sent  in. 

Shortly  after  I  had  assumed  command  of  the  Arkansas 
I  wrote  to  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  requesting  permis 
sion  to  secure  my  turret  range-finder  to  the  top  of  the 
turret  of  the  Arkansas,  in  order  that  I  might  observe 
its  performance  under  practical  conditions,  and  make  it 
a  practical  instrument  if  possible.  This  request  was 
granted  and  when  the  Arkansas  went  into  dry-dock  at 
Norfolk  in  the  early  part  of  April,  I  got  the  instrument 
in  perfect  adjustment.  I  then  wrote  to  the  bureau  stat 
ing  this  fact,  saying  that  I  would  like  to  have  the  perma 
nence  of  adjustment  of  the  range-finder  tested  officially, 
and  requesting  an  allowance  of  five  twelve-inch  shots  to 
be  fired  from  one  of  the  guns  of  the  turret  for  this  pur 
pose.  The  bureau  granted  my  request,  and  sent  Lieu 
tenant-Commander  G.  W.  Williams  to  make  the  test. 

The  test  was  held  under  his  direction.  After  stating 
certain  details,  Mr.  Williams  wrote  as  follows  as  the  third 
paragraph  of  his  report: 

During  the  firing,  the  Barr  and  Stroud  Range  Finder  was  dis 
mounted  and  removed  from  the  top  of  the  turret.  The  distance 
of  the  light-house  on  shore  was  measured  after  each  shot  by  the 
turret  range  finder ;  and  after  the  firing  was  completed,  by  both 
range  finders.  The  maximum  difference  of  readings  for  the  tur 
ret  range  finder  was  400  yards,  varying  between  6400  and  6000. 
The  distance  by  Barr  and  Stroud  Range  Finder  was  6200  yards. 
After  completion  of  these  tests,  simultaneous  observations  with 


i f: 


P      • 

3    v 

<t      LT 
CU    JO 

ii 


COMMANDING  A  MONITOR  401 

the  two  range  finders  were  taken  on  the  ships  of  the  Atlantic 
Fleet  which  was  standing  in  to  an  anchorage  in  Hampton  Roads. 
The  ranges  observed  were  from  7,000  to  12,000  yards,  and  the 
two  range  finders  were  in  agreement  within  the  limits  of  personal 
error. 

I  am  of  the  opinion  that  a  range  finder  constructed  on  this 
principle  is  accurate,  and  that  its  accuracy  will  not  be  materially 
affected  by  the  shock  of  discharge  of  a  gun  of  the  turret  on  which 
it  is  mounted. 

In  the  sixth  paragraph  Mr.  Williams  wrote,  "In  re 
gard  to  the  usefulness  of  a  range  finder  mounted  on  top 
of  a  turret,  I  have  grave  doubts.  The  proposition  to  con 
trol  the  fire  of  a  turret  from  the  turret  itself  runs  counter 
to  the  adopted  policy  of  central  ship  fire  control,"  etc. 

His  last  paragraph  read,  "I  therefore  recommend  that 
the  turret  range-finder  be  not  adopted  at  present." 

Concerning  this  report,  I  wrote  to  the  bureau  on  May 
13,  1907,  protesting  against  the  report,  and  pointing  out 
that  my  turret  range-finder  was  not  intended  to  affect 
the  policy  of  central  ship  fire  control  in  the  slightest,  but 
merely  to  afford  a  more  accurate  and  safe  range-finding 
instrument  than  was  then  used.  I  pointed  out  the  ex 
treme  importance  of  having  a  correct  range-finder  and 
a  correct  system  of  range-finding,  and  said  this  impor 
tance  would  "increase  also  with  the  excitement  of  bat 
tle."  I  pointed  out  the  probability  of  the  fire-control 
stations  being  directly  attacked,  and  reminded  the  bureau 
that  at  the  Battle  of  Chemulpo  all  the  men  in  the  fore-  and 
the  main-tops  of  the  Variag  had  been  either  killed  or 
wounded.  I  pointed  out  the  extreme  value  of  being  able 
to  continue  to  fight  as  long  as  possible,  and  the  aid  which 
a  protected  range-finder  would  give  toward  the  close 
of  a  battle,  when  unprotected  stations  had  been  destroyed. 

My  letter  had  no  effect,  however;  at  least  I  never  re 
ceived  an  answer  to  it. 

For  several  years  all  our  new  battle-ships  have  been 
fitted  with  turret  range  finders. 

The  midshipmen's  practice  cruise  that  summer  was 


402     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

carried  out  in  four  ships,  the  Olympia,  Arkansas,  Florida, 
and  Nevada,  the  Olympia  being  Dewey's  old  flag-ship, 
and  the  other  vessels  being  monitors. 

The  cruise  was  extremely  pleasant,  but  only  two  in 
cidents  stand  out  in  my  memory.  One  incident  was  a 
trial  of  my  method  for  finding  a  ship 's  position  in  a  fog, 
when  the  sun  or  a  star  can  be  seen,  while  the  horizon 
cannot  be  seen ;  the  other  was  our  visit  to  Bath,  Maine. 

A  ship's  position  at  sea  is  ascertained  by  making  cer 
tain  computations  based  on  the  height  of  the  sun  or  heav 
enly  body  above  a  horizontal  line.  In  the  ordinary  prac 
tice  of  navigation,  the  angle  is  measured  between  the 
heavenly  body  and  the  horizon,  the  horizon  being  as 
sumed  to  be  in  a  horizontal  direction  from  the  observer ; 
and  a  correction  is  afterward  applied,  based  on  the  height 
of  the  observer  above  the  water,  to  correct  for  the  error 
due  to  this  assumption.  Now,  it  often  happens  that  the 
sun  or  heavenly  body  can  be  seen  with  perfect  clearness, 
but  the  horizon  cannot  be  seen.  As  I  have  mentioned 
before,  I  had  made  a  great  many  attempts  to  devise  an 
instrument,  which  would  remain  horizontal  at  sea,  to  be 
used  in  place  of  a  horizon ;  but  I  had  never  succeeded.  It 
had  occurred  to  me,  however,  sometime  shortly  after 
1900,  that  if  an  observer  would  measure  the  distance 
of  another  ship  and  simultaneously  measure  the  alti 
tude  of  the  sun  or  heavenly  body  above  that  other 
ship,  the  angle  below  the  horizontal  of  that  ship 's  water- 
line  would  be  just  as  well  known  as  the  angle  of  the 
horizon  below  the  horizontal,  and  could  be  as  effectively 
employed.  For  some  reason  I  had  never  tested  my 
scheme  in  practice;  but  before  our  cruise  began,  I  told 
Lieutenant-Commander  Yates  Stirling,  who  was  both 
executive  officer  and  navigator,  to  try  it  on  the  first 
opportunity. 

One  morning  at  sea  Stirling  reported  to  me  that  he 
had  tried  the  method  the  night  before,  measuring  the 
height  of  the  north  star  above  the  white  truck-light  of 
the  Florida  and  that,  when  he  worked  out  the  sight,  he 


COMMANDING  A  MONITOR  403 

saw  it  was  a  perfect  success.  We  anchored  at  Bath 
shortly  afterward,  and  I  immediately  started  in  with  a 
series  of  observations  in  Bath  Harbor,  which  were  per 
fectly  successful,  and  in  which  Midshipman  Hunsacker 
was  my  assistant. 

I  described  these  observations  in  full  in  an  article  in 
the  Naval  Institute  shortly  afterward,  the  name  of  the 
article  being,  "Navigating  without  Horizon."  I  have 
used  the  method  many  times  since,  and  other  officers  have 
done  so  also. 

Our  stay  at  Bath  was  very  pleasant.  On  one  occasion 
the  citizens  gave  a  ball  to  the  officers  and  midshipmen 
which  I  shall  always  remember.  The  ball-room  was 
elaborately  decorated  with  flags  of  all  kinds,  and  was  very 
large  and  high.  I  have  often  wondered  since  what  kind 
of  room  it  could  have  been,  because  I  could  not  see  any 
windows  either  at  the  sides  or  in  the  top.  The  entrance 
was  draped  with  flags,  and  was  rather  long  and  narrow; 
so  that  there  was  no  chance  for  any  ventilation  whatever 
that  I  could  observe.  The  dancing  started  about  nine 
o'clock,  and  kept  up  till  three,  and  as  I  danced  every 
dance,  and  as  the  room  was  crowded,  and  as  there  was 
no  air  whatever  in  that  ball-room  after  the  ball  was 
finished  that  had  not  been  there  before  the  ball  began,  I 
was  somewhat  tired  when  I  got  back  on  board  ship. 

The  next  day  there  was  a  water  carnival  given  by 
the  city,  in  which  the  practice  squadron  was  asked  to  take 
part.  We  had  known  about  this  for  several  days,  and 
some  of  the  midshipmen  and  enlisted  men  had  asked 
permission  to  take  our  sailing-launch,  which  was  a  large, 
open  old-fashioned  boat,  rig  it  up  to  represent  a  pirate, 
and  enter  it  in  the  carnival.  Of  course  I  was  very  glad 
to  give  permission,  and  when  the  executive  officer  re 
ported  to  me  that  the  pirate  ship  was  all  ready,  and  was 
just  sailing  off  from  the  beach,  where  the  crew  had  been 
making  some  changes  in  her,  I  went  on  the  quarter-deck 
to  see  her.  There  she  was,  coming  toward  the  Arkansas 
under  full  sail.  She  was  brig-rigged,  and  had  a  black 


404     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

flag  at  the  masthead,  with  a  skull  and  cross  bones  on  it. 
On  each  side  she  had  five  make-believe  guns,  and  I  could 
see  that  the  crew  were  dressed  up  to  look  very  fierce. 
As  the  brig  went  under  the  stern  of  the  Arkansas,  the 
pirates  rose  and  brandished  their  swords,  and  made  some 
savage  gestures,  and  looked  very  terrible  indeed.  Im 
agine  my  feelings  to  see  the  name  painted  on  the  stern 
in  large  letters,  "  Bradley  A.  Fiske." 

After  sailing  around  the  four  ships  of  the  squadron, 
the  pirate  admiral  visited  each  ship  in  succession,  and 
was  received  with  appropriate  honors.  During  the  eve 
ning  the  pirate  ship  took  part  in  the  parade  and  received 
the  prize.  The  following  day  the  crew  took  part  in  the 
shore  parade,  which  was  reviewed  by  Governor  Cobb. 
As  they  passed  the  reviewing  stand,  the  pirates  left  the 
parade,  and  reported  in  person  to  the  Governor,  and  of 
fered  their  services  in  case  of  war.  The  governor  ac 
cepted  the  offer,  and  invited  them  to  take  seats  on  the 
grand  stand. 

The  Arkansas  went  from  Bath  to  New  London,  Con 
necticut,  and  there  I  received  orders  to  proceed  to  Wash 
ington  for  examination  for  promotion  to  the  grade  of 
captain.  I  was  of  course  somewhat  fearful  about  my 
physical  examination,  on  account  of  my  heart  disease; 
but  the  doctors  told  me  that  my  heart  was  right  in  every 
way,  and  that  I  was  remarkably  healthy  for  a  man  of 
fifty-two,  though  I  was  greatly  underweight. 

It  was  now  thirty-two  years  and  three  months  since 
my  graduation.  Thirty  men  had  stood  up  together  on 
graduation  day,  but  of  these  only  four  now  were  left 
on  the  active  list,  and  only  four  became  captains,  Peters, 
Fiske,  Hutchins,  and  Bowyer. 

After  my  examination,  I  returned  to  the  Arkansas 
at  New  London.  The  cruise  was  nearly  over  now,  and 
in  a  few  days  we  started  for  Hampton  Roads.  From 
Hampton  Roads  we  went  to  the  Washington  Navy-Yard 
to  give  the  midshipmen  an  opportunity  to  see  guns  and 
gun-carriages  in  course  of  manufacture.  On  going  up  to 


COMMANDING  A  MONITOR  405 

the  navy-yard  dock,  I  saw  it  would  be  difficult  to  make  a 
good  landing,  because  we  were  going  with  the  tide;  but 
as  the  tide  was  not  strong,  I  thought  I  would  try  to  go 
alongside  without  turning  around.  Just  as  I  got  nearly 
where  I  wanted  to  go,  however,  some  eddy  got  the  stern 
and  threw  it  out.  That  hint  was  sufficient  for  me,  and 
so  I  changed  my  plan  and  went  alongside  the  dock,  head 
ing  out.  I  was  able  to  accomplish  this  quite  smoothly, 
for  which  I  was  glad;  because  there  were  a  number  of 
naval  officers  on  the  dock  looking  at  us.  After  we  had 
made  fast,  some  of  them  came  on  board;  and  one  of 
them,  a  commander,  said  to  me : 

''Jim,  that  was  one  of  the  best  pieces  of  ship-handling 
I  've  ever  seen." 

"Well,  it  really  was  n't,"  I  answered.  "It  was  really 
a  bungle ;  I  was  trying  to  do  something  else." 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 

TUEBET   RANGE-FINDER,   HORIZOMETER,    COURAGE,   AND 
PRUDENCE 

IT  was  now  the  latter  part  of  August.  I  was  detached 
in  a  few  days  and  placed  on  waiting  orders.  I  went 
to  New  York,  and  on  my  way  passed  through  Washing 
ton,  where  I  went  to  arrange  what  duty  I  should  be 
ordered  to.  I  was  offered  the  command  of  the  battle 
ship  Illinois,  which  was  to  take  part  in  the  cruise  around 
the  world,  in  the  fleet  under  Rear-Admiral  Evans.  Of 
course  I  accepted  it  with  pleasure.  As  the  fleet  was  not 
to  start  for  some  months,  I  was  given  charge  of  the 
recruiting  offices  in  New  York.  This  duty  was  not  much 
to  my  liking,  but  as  it  was  to  continue  for  only  a  short 
time,  I  accepted  the  duty,  if  not  with  pleasure,  at  least 
with  philosophy. 

In  the  early  part  of  October  my  wife  was  taken  desper 
ately  ill.  After  about  a  month  the  attending  physician 
told  me  that  he  thought  a  surgical  operation  was  neces 
sary.  I  called  in  a  prominent  surgeon  of  New  York,  and 
he  told  me,  after  an  examination,  that  she  could  not 
stand  the  operation,  and  that,  furthermore,  it  was  too 
late.  He  told  me,  however,  that  he  was  not  sure  that 
the  disease  was  as  it  had  been  diagnosed,  and  that  she 
might  possibly  get  well  without  an  operation;  in  which 
case  her  recovery  would  be  long  and  tedious. 

This  put  me  in  a  painful  position  not  only  personally, 
but  professionally.  To  give  up  the  command  of  a  bat 
tle-ship  just  as  she  was  to  start  on  an  extended  cruise 
would  be  almost  professional  suicide,  and  yet  I  could  not 
leave  my  wife  in  her  dangerous  condition.  So  I  wrote 
a  personal  letter,  explaining  matters  to  Admiral  Brown- 

406 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  407 

son,  who  was  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Navigation,  and  one 
of  the  most  strict  and  officer-like  men  in  the  navy,  and 
therefore,  one  of  the  fairest  and  most  high-minded.  I 
got  back  a  letter  from  Brownson,  saying  that  if  I  would 
write  an  official  letter,  requesting  that  my  name  be 
taken  off  of  the  list  of  the  officers  of  the  Illinois,  my  re 
quest  would  be  granted.  I  made  the  request,  and  it  was 
granted.  I  have  heard  since  that  most  officers  thought  I 
had  professionally  killed  myself,  or  at  least  shut  the 
door  to  any  further  career  in  the  navy  except  of  a  very 
obscure  kind. 

During  the  autumn  and  winter  my  wife  was  very  ill 
indeed;  nevertheless,  she  gradually  improved.  My 
duty  as  recruiting  officer  had  the  advantage  that  it  gave 
me  considerable  leisure  in  which  to  look  out  for  my  wife, 
and  as  she  had  a  professional  nurse,  it  enabled  me  also 
to  develop  my  turret  range-finder  and  my  horizometer. 
Both  of  these  instruments  I  developed  at  my  own  ex 
pense  at  the  works  of  the  Western  Electric  Company  on 
West  Street, 

I  had  my  turret  range-finder  removed  from  the  top  of 
the  turret  of  the  Arkansas,  and  placed  in  its  old  position 
on  top  of  the  roof  of  the  Western  Electric  Company's 
building.  There  were  a  number  of  prominent  objects  in 
sight,  and  so  in  a  short  time  I  was  able  to  get  the  in 
strument  to  working  well  and  giving  accurate  readings. 

Then  I  wrote  a  careful  letter  to  the  Bureau  of  Ord 
nance,  asking  for  a  retrial  of  my  turret  range-finder.  I 
pointed  out  that  the  only  objection  which  the  Bureau  of 
Ordnance  had  previously  expressed  regarding  the  tur 
ret  range-finder  was  in  regard  to  its  ability  to  withstand 
the  shock  of  discharge  of  the  guns  in  a  turret,  and  that 
the  tests  on  board  the  Arkansas  in  April  had  conclusively 
proved  that  it  could  withstand  such  a  shock. 

The  bureau  appointed  a  board,  of  which  Captain  Henry 
Morell  was  the  head.  This  board  made  many  measure 
ments,  using  in  comparison  with  it  the  ordinary  fifty- 
four-inch  Barr  &  Stroud  range-finder,  and  also  a  nine- 


408     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

foot  Barr  &  Stroud  range-finder  that  belonged  on  board 
the  Connecticut,  and  which  was  operated  during  these 
trials  by  Lieutenant  Smith,  who  was  the  officer  who  used 
it  in  the  Connecticut.  The  board  made  a  report,  dated 
November  13,  1907. 

The  tests  of  the  instrument  were  made  in  measuring 
known  distances  ranging  from  1100  yards  to  12,000  yards, 
and  they  were  compared  with  the  measurements  made 
by  the  two  Barr  &  Stroud  range-finders.  In  its  report 
the  board  found  fault  with  many  of  the  mechanical  ar 
rangements  of  my  range-finder,  although  I  had  explained 
to  them  that  those  mechanical  arrangements  were  due 
merely  to  the  necessity  at  that  time  of  putting  the  range- 
finder  on  -a  platform,  that  the  range-finder  itself  was  in 
tended  to  be  secured  inside  of  a  turret,  and  that  I  was 
merely  trying  to  show  that  a  range-finder  could  be  made 
as  long  as  the  diameter  of  the  turret  and  be  accurate, 
and  that  I  had  already  proved  that  it  could  stand  the 
shock  of  discharge  of  the  guns.  The  second  paragraph 
of  the  board's  conclusion  read  as  follows: 

In  regard  to  accuracy,  when  both  are  in  adjustment,  the 
Board  is  of  the  opinion  that  with  equal  magnification,  the  ac 
curacy  of  the  Fiske  Turret  Range  Finder  and  the  4'6"  Base 
Barr  &  Stroud  instrument,  to  a  range  of  5000  yards,  would  be 
approximately  equal ;  and  that  with  a  Barr  &  Stroud  of  9'  base, 
the  observations  would  be  approximately  of  equal  accuracy  to 
about  eight  or  nine  thousand  yards.  Beyond  this  range,  it  is 
believed  that  the  15'  base  of  the  Fiske  Turret  Range  Finder 
would  give  more  accurate  readings. 

As  the  report  of  the  board  was  distinctly  unfavorable, 
although  it  did  not  deal  with  the  subject  of  turret  range- 
finders  itself,  but  devoted  itself  entirely  to  the  actual  de 
vice  which  I  had  submitted,  I  wrote  a  letter  to  the  bureau, 
in  which  I  pointed  out  that  my  invention  of  a  turret 
range-finder  was  not  limited  to  any  kind  of  mechanism, 
but  rather  to  the  manner  of  combining  a  range-finder 
and  a  turret,  which  I  had  set  forth  in  my  patent  specifica- 


TUEBET  EANGE-FINDER  409 

tion,  and  I  asked  the  bureau  to  call  the  attention  of  the 
board  to  certain  items  in  their  report  which  I  specified. 
The  bureau  submitted  my  letter  to  the  board,  and  the 
board  made  certain  comments  in  reply  under  date  of 
January  23, 1908.  The  gist  of  the  board's  reply  was  that 
the  board  adhered  to  its  original  report. 

About  the  first  of  April  I  received  orders  to  report  for 
duty  at  the  Philadelphia  Navy-yard,  as  captain  of  the 
yard,  a  position  next  to  that  of  commandant.  These 
orders  were  very  distressing,  as  my  wife  was  still  ex 
tremely  ill;  but  of  course  they  were  perfectly  proper, 
and  of  course  I  obeyed  them  without  remonstrance. 

Shortly  after  my  arrival  at  the  Philadelphia  Navy- 
yard  I  had  my  turret  range-finder  sent  there,  and  I  in 
stalled  it  in  position  at  the  end  of  one  of  the  wharfs, 
from  which  a  view  of  many  objects  could  be  had.  After 
getting  the  range-finder  ready,  I  wrote  a  letter  to  the 
bureau,  dated  May  12,  1908,  in  which  I  pointed  out  that 
the  previous  board  had  not  mentioned  one  good  feature 
of  my  turret  range-finder  until  certain  questions  in  my 
protest  had  brought  out  those  features  in  the  board's 
reply. 

A  board  was  duly  ordered,  and  in  due  time  made  its 
report,  which  was  dated  June  19,  1908.  This  board,  like 
the  others,  found  fault  with  the  details  of  the  instrument 
presented;  but  unlike  the  previous  report,  did  take  up 
the  subject  of  a  turret  range-finder  per  se. 

The  board  did  not  agree  at  all  with  my  proposition 
that  a  turret  range-finder  was  a  desirable  thing  to  have. 
The  eighth  paragraph  read  as  follows: 

The  board  has  given  careful  consideration  to  the  proposed 
method  of  Captain  Fiske  of  installing  a  range  finder  protected 
by  armor  upon  the  turret.  Such  a  method  is  found  to  derive 
its  most  useful  application  only  from  the  adoption  of  the  system, 
which  to  the  board  appears  radically  wrong,  of  individual  fire 
control  for  each  turret,  as  against  centralized  fire  control  for 
the  entire  ship.  And  while,  as  an  adjunct  to  the  present  fire 
control  system  —  or  more  accurately  speaking,  as  a  reserve  to 


410     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

be  used  upon  the  disabling  of  that  system  —  it  would  have  an 
undoubted  value,  the  board  deems  that  if  the  weight  necessary 
for  five  or  more  armored  turret  range-finder  stations  were  de 
voted  to  the  protection  of  the  central  fire-  control  system,  a 
higher  fighting  efficiency  would  result;  and  it  is  considered  that 
with  an  armored  fire  control  system,  the  purposes  of  individual 
control  as  a  reserve  would  be  fulfilled  by  supplying  to  each  tur 
ret  a  small  range-finder,  such  as  the  stadimeter  or  some  other 
type  of  portable  instrument. 

In  conclusion  the  board  recommended  that  my  instru 
ment  should  not  be  tried  on  a  ship  in  commission  for 
further  test. 

The  reports  of  the  various  boards  on  the  turret  range- 
finder  are  interesting  now  in  the  light  of  the  fact  that  all 
the  battle-ships  which  have  been  authorized  since  1910 
have  been  fitted  with  turret  range-finders  that  come 
specifically  within  the  claims  granted  to  me  by  the  United 
States  Patent  office,  and  published  in  m,y  patent,  dated 
November  20,  1900. 

Before  I  had  gone  to  the  Minneapolis  I  had  invented 
an  instrument  that  I  called  a  "horizometer,"  because  it 
was  intended  at  first  to  be  both  an  improvement  on  the 
stadimeter  and  an  instrument  for  measuring  distances 
of  objects  at  sea,  the  base  of  which  was  one's  own  height 
above  the  sea;  so  that  the  range  was  measured  by  meas 
uring  the  angle  of  the  distant  object  below  the  horizontal. 
It  was  a  very  pretty  instrument  indeed,  and  it  worked 
very  well  when  the  horizon  could  be  clearly  seen.  I 
took  it  with  me  when  I  went  to  the  Minneapolis,  and 
tried  it  a  great  many  times  at  sea  and  in  port,  some 
times  using  it  on  the  bridge  and  sometimes  in  the  main 
top.  A  board  of  officers  tried  it,  and  made  an  official 
report  while  we  were  in  Madeira.  The  report  of  the 
board  was  favorable  in  the  main,  but  pointed  out  that 
the  instrument  was  too  small,  in  their  opinion,  to  get  the 
accuracy  required.  I  took  the  instrument  with  me  when 
I  went  to  the  Arkansas,  and  after  many  trials  with  it  I 
concluded  that  the  horizon  could  so  seldom  be  seen  with 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  411 

sufficient  clearness  that  I  would  have  to  give  up  one  of 
my  ideas  in  connection  with  it  (that  of  measuring  an 
object  by  measuring  its  angular  distance  below  the 
horizontal)  and  confine  myself  to  using  it  as  an  im 
provement  on  the  stadimeter.  I  concluded,  however,  to 
retain  the  name  horizometer  simply  as  a  matter  of  con 
venience. 

By  the  time  I  left  the  Arkansas,  however,  I  realized  that 
the  instrument  was  too  small,  especially  since  the  ad 
vancing  improvement  in  naval  gunnery  called  for  greater 
accuracy  than  before,  and  for  the  measurement  of  longer 
distances.  So  I  constructed  another  instrument,  and 
submitted  that  for  trial.  This  instrument  was  tried  by 
the  same  board  that  tried  my  turret  range-finder.  The 
report  of  this  board  was  far  from  favorable. 

During  the  years  that  followed  the  target  practice  in 
the  spring  of  1903,  which  tested  the  system  of  gunnery 
training  devised  by  Captain  Sir  Percy  Scott,  and  intro 
duced  into  the  United  States  Navy  by  Sims,  the  gunnery 
of  the  navy  has  made  a  great  advance.  As  a  naval  offi 
cer  and  as  the  inventor  of  both  the  telescope  sight  and  of 
spotting,  I  was  of  course  much  pleased,  and  the  fact  that 
all  the  credit  was  given  to  Sims,  and  none  of  it  to  me, 
did  not  disturb  me  in  the  least.  It  seemed  to  me,  how 
ever,  that  the  gunnery  would  be  even  better  if  less  de 
pendence  were  placed  on  spotting  and  more  on  the  use 
of  the  range-finder.  It  seemed  to  me  that  spotting  was 
essentially  too  crude  and  inexact  a  method  to  give  suffi 
ciently  good  results  for  so  precise  a  science  as  that  of 
gunnery,  and  that  it  would  be  better  to  use  the  range- 
finder  as  the  basis  of  the  gunnery  practice,  and  use  spot 
ting  simply  to  correct  the  indications  of  the  range-finder. 
As  I  had  talked  and  written  a  good  deal  on  the  subject, 
and  as  it  seemed  to  me  that  the  adoration  of  spotting 
was  like  the  adoration  of  the  British  Navy  for  mere 
dash  and  courage,  I  thought  I  would  try  an  attack  on 
both  from  a  new  direction.  So  I  wrote  an  article,  which 
was  printed  in  the  Naval  Institute  in  March,  1908,  called 


412     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

1  'Courage  and  Prudence,"  in  which  I  pointed  out  the 
great  value  of  courage  in  war,  but  also  the  fact  that  the 
greatest  disasters  in  history  had  occurred  because  of 
lack  of  proper  prudence.  I  led  up  from  this  to  the 
advocacy  of  not  only  defensive  methods,  but  also  defen 
sive  construction,  and  pointed  out  that  the  greatest  naval 
victory  in  history  was  that  of  the  Monitor  over  the 
Merrimac,  and  that  the  Monitor's  superiority  over  the 
Merrimac  lay  almost  wholly  in  her  defensive  qualities. 

Among  other  measures,  I  suggested  the  idea  of  giving 
the  captain  better  protection  inside  the  conning-tower 
by  abandoning  the  slits  in  the  sides  and  giving  him  a 
small  periscope,  which  would  project  through  the  roof. 
At  the  present  day  the  captain  does  have  such  a  periscope, 
and  while  slits  have  not  been  altogether  abandoned,  there 
is  a  good  deal  of  evidence  that  they  will  be. 

Another  plan  that  I  suggested,  which  was  wholly  new, 
was  to  have  a  ''plotter"  seated  at  a  table,  in  a  room 
below  the  water-line,  and  to  place  in  front  of  him  a  plot- 
ting-board  "much  like  a  plane-table,"  on  which  he  would 
plot  at  intervals  points  representing  the  distance  and 
direction  of  the  target,  according  to  information  received 
from  the  range-finder-observers  on  deck.  One  sentence 
read: 

"Let  the  plotter  continually  connect  the  points  estab 
lished;  and  it  is  clear  that  the  line  resulting  will  repre 
sent  not  the  course  and  speed  of  the  enemy  ship,  but 
its  course  and  speed  relative  to  our  ship." 

A  following  sentence  read: 

"As  everybody  would  be  behind  armor,  such  work 
would  not  seem  at  all  liable  to  error,  due  to  excitement; 
especially  as  no  mental  arithmetic  would  have  to  be  car 
ried  on." 

This  suggestion  seemed  to  attract  no  attention  at  the 
time,  but  it  was  adopted  in  toto  by  the  Navy  Depart 
ment  fire-control  board  in  1910.  It  is  the  basis  of  our 
fire-control  system  now,  though  several  very  ingenious 
instruments  have  been  invented  and  developed  to  carry 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  413 

it  out.  Among  these  is  the  "Course  Indicator,"  which 
is  a  slight  (very  slight)  modification  of  my  horizometer. 

In  June,  1908,  I  published  in  the  Naval  Institute  an 
article  called  "Spotting  and  Range-Finding,"  in  which 
I  pointed  out  what  seemed  to  me  the  folly  of  basing  our 
target  practice  and  gunnery  wholly  on  the  spotting  done 
by  unprotected  observers  aloft,  and  in  which  I  wrote 
in  one  sentence,  "The  use  of  protected  range  finders, 
supplemented  during  the  opening  stages  of  the  battle  by 
an  observer  aloft,  is  the  only  practical  way  of  securing 
accurate  sight  bar  ranges  in  battle."  The  article  was 
illustrated  with  certain  diagrams  intended  to  point  out 
that,  while  spotting  was  a  necessary  adjunct  to  fire  con 
trol  in  battle,  it  was  inherently  inaccurate,  and  should 
be  used  merely  to  rectify  errors,  and  that  the  range- 
finder  must  be  the  real  basis.  In  December,  1908,  I  pub 
lished  another  article  on  the  same  subject,  called,  "A 
Curious  Fact  About  Spotting,"  which  was  intended 
merely  to  reinforce  the  previous  article. 

In  March,  1908,  I  suddenly  received  orders  to  report 
the  following  day  to  the  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Naviga 
tion,  and  be  prepared  to  testify  before  the  Senate  Naval 
Committee.  I  knew  that  the  committee  was  investigating 
certain  matters  connected  with  the  Navy  Department, 
especially  the  armor  attached  to  ships;  but  I  could  not 
see  why  I  should  be  sent  for,  as  it  was  not  a  subject  to 
which  I  had  given  any  attention.  When  I  reported  to 
the  chief  of  the  bureau,  I  was  told  that  I  probably  would 
be  before  the  committee  several  days,  and  that  I  was  to 
be  questioned  in  regard  to  several  matters.  I  reported 
at  the  committee-room  about  noon.  In  the  interim  I  was 
told  by  several  officers  that  I  would  probably  be  before 
the  committee  several  days,  and  advised  to  "give  'em 


By  the  time  I  reached  the  committee-room  I  was  in  a 
complete  state  of  bewilderment  ;  but  I  had  come  to  one 
conclusion,  which  was  fairly  clear,  and  that  was  that 
somebody  was  sending  me  there  for  some  purpose  of 


414     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

which  I  was  ignorant,  and  that  I  had  better  be  careful 
as  to  what  I  said.  When  I  appeared  before  the  com 
mittee,  the  man  who  did  most  of  the  questioning  was 
Senator  Tillman.  Most  of  his  questions  were  along  the 
lines  of  naval  construction,  and  to  most  of  them  I  an 
swered,  "I  don't  know."  I  could  see  that  something 
was  going  wrong,  and  that  he  was  getting  irritated. 
Finally  he  said: 

'  *  Do  you  mean  to  tell  me  that  you  are  a  captain  in  the 
navy  and  don 't  know  how  high  armor  ought  to  be  put  on 
a  ship?" 

"Yes,  Senator."  This  seemed  to  irritate  him  still 
more,  especially  as  a  titter  went  up  from  some  of  the 
other  members  of  the  committee;  so  he  said: 

"He  doesn't  know  anything  about  naval  things,  any 
how;  he  's  never  been  in  a  battle." 

"You  forget  the  Battle  of  Manila,  Senator.  I  was 
there,"  I  objected. 

"Oh,  that  was  not  a  battle;  it  was  a  murder  on  our 
side, ' '  exclaimed  Mr.  Tillman. 

"We  incurred  very  little  risk  in  that  engagement," 
interposed  Senator  Hale. 

"We  think  that  now  as  we  look  back  at  the  battle," 
said  I;  "we  didn't  think  so  before  the  engagement." 

There  was  a  pause  in  the  proceedings  then,  and  Sena 
tor  Hale,  who  was  the  presiding  member,  asked  me  to 
step  outside,  saying  that  he  would  call  me  later. 

I  waited  outside  about  an  hour,  and  then  sent  in  word 
that  I  should  like  to  see  Senator  Hale.  When  he  came 
out,  I  told  him  that  my  wife  was  very  ill  in  New  York, 
and  as  it  was  Saturday  afternoon,  I  should  like  to  go 
back  to  New  York  and  appear  again  Monday  morning  in 
case  the  committee  did  not  want  me  any  more  that  after 
noon.  Senator  Hale  went  into  the  committee-room,  and 
soon  came  out  again,  saying  that  I  might  go  to  New 
York,  and  that  the  committee  would  let  me  know  when 
they  wanted  me  again. 

So  I  went  to  New  York,  expecting  to  be  called  back 


TURRET  RANGE-FINDER  415 

very  soon;  because  I  had  been  before  the  committee 
hardly  ten  minutes  and  I  had  been  told  that  I  would 
be  before  the  committee  several  days.  The  summons  to 
appear  before  the  committee  has  not  yet  come. 

At  the  Philadelphia  Navy-Yard  I  occupied  the  large 
house  which  the  commandants  ordinarily  had  occupied. 
The  commandant  at  this  time,  however,  preferred  a 
smaller  house  on  the  river-front,  and  I  found  myself  lord 
and  master  of  a  large,  fine  residence,  which  I  occupied 
entirely  alone,  with  two  colored  servants.  The  house 
was  at  the  extreme  northern  end  of  the  navy-yard,  near 
the  main  gate,  and  on  the  brink  of  a  large  swamp.  One 
night  I  was  aroused  from  my  slumbers  by  a  heartrending 
sound,  which  I  did  not  recognize  at  first,  but  which  I 
gradually  recognized,  as  my  faculties  returned  to  me, 
as  that  of  a  cow,  and  it  seemed  to  be  in  great  distress. 
The  noise  continued,  and  became  so  pitiful  that  I  got  out 
of  bed  and  went  down  to  the  telephone,  which  was  in  the 
main  hall,  called  up  the  sergeant  of  the  guard,  on  duty 
on  the  gate  near  by,  and  told  him  to  send  a  marine  to 
me  immediately.  In  less  than  a  minute  a  marine  ap 
peared  before  me.  He  was  out  of  breath  from  running, 
but  he  saluted  with  precision,  and  assumed  the  attitude 
of  attention.  I  said  to  him : 

"I  've  been  wakened  by  that  noise  out  there,  and  I 
wish  you  would  tell  the  sergeant  to  see  what  is  the  cause 
of  it.  It  sounds  to  me  as  if  some  cow  had  got  caught  in 
the  swamp."  The  man,  who  was  a  private  of  marines, 
gazed  at  me  with  a  most  peculiar  expression  for  a  few 
seconds.  Then  an  irrepressible  grin  spread  over  his 
face  as  he  saluted  and  said : 

"Sir,  that  isn't  a  cow;  that  's  a  bull-frog." 

As  the  spring  wore  on,  my  wife  became  gradually  bet 
ter,  and  I  realized  that  the  time  was  coming  when  I  must 
leave  her;  but  she  was  getting  better  so  slowly  that  I 
realized  also  that  I  should  have  to  leave  her  before  she 
became  completely  well.  So  in  the  early  part  of  June  I 
went  to  Washington  and  told  Rear-Admiral  Pillsbury, 


416     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

who  was  then  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Navigation,  that  my 
wife's  health  was  now  such  that  I  was  able  to  leave  her, 
but  that  I  should  like  to  be  given  command  of  a  ship 
near  home.  I  said,  however,  that  if  such  a  command 
could  not  be  given  me,  I  should  like  to  command  one  of 
the  battle-ships  of  the  fleet  under  Admiral  Evans,  which 
had  started  on  its  cruise  around  the  world,  and  was  then 
in  the  Pacific  on  the  way  to  San  Francisco.  Pillsbury 
answered  that  there  were  to  be  a  couple  of  vacancies  in 
the  commands  in  that  fleet,  but  that  they  had  already 
been  provided  for ;  and  that  the  only  chance  for  me  was 
the  armored  cruiser  Tennessee,  the  captain  of  which, 
" Tommy  Howard,"  was  to  be  sent  to  command  the 
Ohio.  Of  course  I  accepted  the  command  of  the  Ten 
nessee. 

In  a  few  days  I  received  orders  detaching  me  from  the 
Philadelphia  Navy- Yard,  and  ordering  me  to  proceed  to 
San  Francisco  and  take  command  of  the  Tennessee  on 
July  7. 

My  wife  was  now  able  to  be  moved,  and  on  the  thirtieth 
of  June,  I  took  her  down  to  the  Marlborough-Blenheim 
Hotel  at  Atlantic  City,  with  a  professional  nurse  and 
our  daughter.  The  next  morning  I  bade  her  good-by  and 
left  her. 

If  any  man  thinks  that  it  is  pleasant  to  leave  one 's  wife 
ill  in  bed,  while  he  starts  on  a  two  years '  cruise,  on  a  sta 
tion  three  thousand  miles  away,  let  him  try  it. 


CHAPTEE  XXIX 

THE    CAPTAIN  *S    CRUISE 

I  LEFT  New  York  in  the  afternoon  of  July  1, 1908,  and 
made  the  same  trip  that  I  had  made  in  December, 
1896.  I  reached  San  Francisco  in  the  evening  of  July  5, 
and  went  to  one  of  the  most  perfect  hotels  that  I  have 
ever  known,  the  St.  Francis.  The  Tennessee  did  not  ar 
rive  until  the  following  day.  I  reported  on  board  to 
Rear-Admiral  Sebree  at  two  o'clock.  In  less  than  an 
hour  from  the  time  of  my  going  on  board,  I  was  on  the 
bridge  in  uniform,  piloting  the  ship  to  an  anchorage  far 
ther  up  the  bay,  where  she  was  to  take  on  coal. 

The  Tennessee,  while  not  a  battle-ship  in  the  technical 
sense,  because  her  armor  was  not  so  thick  as  a  battle 
ship's,  and  because  she  had  ten-inch  guns  instead  of 
twelve-inch  guns,  was  a  captain's  command  in  every 
sense.  She  was  harder  to  handle  than  a  battle-ship,  be 
cause  of  her  greater  length,  and  she  carried  more  men 
than  most  of  them,  because  she  carried  a  greater  number 
of  guns  and  had  more  powerful  engines.  She  was  the 
flag-ship  of  the  second  division  of  the  Pacific  fleet,  and 
carried  the  flag  of  Rear- Admiral  Uriel  Sebree.  The  fleet 
was  composed  of  two  divisions  of  armored  cruisers,  and 
was  under  the  command  of  Rear-Admiral  Swinburne, 
who  commanded  the  first  division  as  well  as  the  fleet 
itself. 

After  coaling,  we  proceeded  to  the  navy-yard  at  Brem 
erton,  in  the  State  of  Washington.  Bremerton  is  near 
Seattle,  on  Puget  Sound,  and  is  the  site  of  a  large  navy- 
yard,  which  was  established  shortly  after  our  Spanish 
War. 

I  liked  the  Tennessee  tremendously,  but  I  saw  that 

417 


418     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

my  work  was  to  be  of  an  engrossing  character.  She  had 
a  splendid  crew,  which  had  been  put  into  an  excellent  state 
of  discipline  and  good  humor  by  Captain  Howard,  whose 
strong  common  sense  and  unselfish  character,  combined 
with  natural  ability,  has  enabled  him  to  make  a  success 
of  every  position  he  has  occupied  in  the  navy.  Our  trip 
north  and  through  the  magnificent  Strait  of  San  Juan  de 
Fuca,  was  exhilarating;  but  I  confess  that  I  had  a  very 
cold  feeling  in  the  region  of  the  stomach  when  I  saw 
what  a  sharp  turn  I  should  have  to  make  with  the  Ten 
nessee,  and  in  what  a  narrow  channel,  when  we  should 
reach  the  bend  near  the  navy-yard.  Fortunately,  I  had 
become  so  thoroughly  frightened  by  the  time  I  reached 
the  dreaded  spot  that  I  was  able  to  make  the  turn  per 
fectly.  I  had  to  make  that  turn  several  times  afterward 
during  the  course  of  the  cruise,  but  I  never  did  it  better 
than  I  did  the  first  time.  This  may  seem  strange  when 
one  realizes  that  I  was  handling  a  mass  weighing  14,000 
tons,  going  through  the  water  at  a  speed  of  sixteen  knots, 
that  I  had  never  handled  such  a  vessel  before,  and  had 
never  been  within  five  hundred  miles  of  the  spot.  Nat 
urally,  on  subsequent  occasions,  I  had  much  better  knowl 
edge  of  the  ship,  but,  then,  on  those  subsequent  occasions 
my  faculties  were  less  stimulated  than  on  the  first  oc 
casion.  Men  differ  in  these  matters  very  much.  In  my 
own  case  I  have  always  noticed  that  I  have  played  the 
first  game  of  billiards  or  ten-pins  or  cards  better  than  I 
have  played  the  succeeding  games. 

We  found  Bremerton  a  pleasant  place  in  many  ways. 
The  scenery  was  magnificent  and  the  climate  fine,  much 
warmer  than  that  of  San  Francisco,  although  Bremerton 
is  six  hundred  miles  farther  north.  After  a  stay  of  about 
two  months,  during  which  we  were  subjected  to  many 
repairs  and  alterations,  mostly  on  the  fire-control  sys 
tem,  we  went  to  San  Francisco,  where  all  the  Pacific  fleet 
now  gathered. 

The  fleet  was  to  go  to  Honolulu,  then  to  Samoa,  then 
back  to  Honolulu,  and  then  to  Mexico.  We  were  to  tow 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  419 

eight  destroyers  to  Samoa,  as  a  matter  of  practice  and 
experiment,  each  ship  towing  one  destroyer. 

We  started  for  Honolulu  one  bright  afternoon,  and  had 
a  most  successful  trip,  one  that  has  become  historical  in 
the  navy  for  the  reason  that  no  such  large  scale  towing 
of  destroyers  had  ever  been  attempted  before.  We 
reached  Honolulu  one  beautiful  morning,  and  let  go  our 
destroyers,  which  remained  outside  until  the  big  ships 
had  gotten  alongside  their  docks.  Local  pilots  came  on 
board,  and  advised  the  captain  of  each  ship  as  how  best 
to  maneuver  in  the  narrow  waters  of  the  harbor.  After 
a  short  stay  in  a  place  which  was  still  beautiful  on  shore, 
but  of  which  the  beautiful  water-front  and  harbor  had 
been  utterly  destroyed  by  civilization,  we  steamed  our 
ships  out  to  sea,  took  our  destroyers  in  tow  again,  and 
started  for  the  Samoan  Islands. 

A  rather  pleasant,  but  warm,  trip  took  us  to  Apia,  the 
principal  port  of  that  part  of  the  Samoan  Islands  that  be 
longed  to  Germany.  We  accomplished  with  perfect  suc 
cess  our  towing  trip,  which  aggregated  somewhat  over 
five  thousand  sea  miles,  divided  into  two  nearly  equal 
parts.  Occasionally  the  towing-line  carried  away  be 
tween  a  ship  and  her  destroyer,  but  it  was  repaired  in  a 
short  time  and  it  did  not  happen  to  the  Tennessee.  The 
arrival  at  Apia  of  our  eight  ships,  each  towing  a  de 
stroyer,  and  the  fact  that  the  trip  had  been  accomplished 
at  an  average  speed  of  about  nine  and  a  half  knots, 
showed  the  practicability  of  such  an  attempt  under  the 
conditions  which  prevailed.  The  conditions  which  pre 
vailed,  however,  had  been  extremely  good,  and  the  facts 
that  destroyers  are  now  about  twice  the  size  of  those  we 
towed,  that  the  conditions  which  prevailed  can  be  counted 
on  in  tropical  climates  only,  and  that  no  such  undertaking 
has  been  made  since,  indicate  that,  after  all,  our  trip  had 
little  value  for  the  future.  We  had  the  idea  in  the  fleet  at 
that  time  that  the  real  purpose  of  the  trip  was  to  get  a 
considerable  fighting  force  into  the  neighborhood  of 
Japan. 


420     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

Our  stay  at  Apia  was  brief,  but  interesting.  The  scen 
ery  was  beautiful  in  every  way,  and  if  it  had  not  been  for 
the  extreme  warmth  and  humidity  of  the  climate,  our  stay 
would  have  been  delightful.  Some  of  us  went  to  the 
home  of  Robert  Louis  Stevenson,  in  which  he  spent  his 
latter  days,  and  where  he  died.  Most  of  us  supposed 
that  he  had  died  of  consumption;  but  we  were  informed 
that  he  died  very  suddenly  one  day  from  an  attack  of  apo 
plexy  while  in  the  act  of  preparing  a  salad. 

The  commander-in-chief  had  gone  with  the  first  division 
to  Pango-Pango,  the  principal  port  of  that  part  of  the 
Samoan  Islands  that  belonged  to  the  United  States,  while 
we  of  the  second  division  had  gone  to  Apia.  On  our  way 
from  Apia  to  Pango-Pango  to  join  the  commander-in- 
chief,  we  received  a  wireless  message  from  him,  direct 
ing  Admiral  Sebree  to  anchor  three  of  his  ships  in  the 
harbor,  but  to  direct  the  Tennessee  to  go  alongside  the 
dock.  When  I  looked  at  the  chart  and  saw  how  small  the 
harbor  was,  and  that  I  should  have  to  make  a  sharp  turn 
as  soon  as  I  entered  the  harbor,  and  go  alongside  a  small 
dock,  I  thought  that  the  time  when  I  must  make  expiation 
for  all  my  sins  had  come  at  last.  I  saw  visions  of  the 
Tennessee  going  among  the  ships  in  the  small  harbor  in 
the  same  way  that  a  bowling-ball  goes  among  a  group  of 
ten-pins,  and  then  I  saw  a  dock  being  crumpled  up  into 
small  pieces,  and  the  captain  of  the  Tennessee  being 
court-martialed. 

But,  as  has  always  happened  to  me  when  I  have  been 
thoroughly  frightened,  no  mishap  occurred.  The  Tennes 
see  went  alongside  that  dock  with  as  much  apparent  ease 
and  quiet,  and  lack  of  backing  and  hauling  on  ropes,  as  if 
she  had  been  a  rowboat. 

We  remained  in  Pango-Pango  for  about  ten  days.  My 
friend  and  classmate,  John  F.  Parker,  now  a  captain  on 
the  retired  list,  was  governor,  and  he  introduced  us  to  the 
various  high  chiefs  and  other  people  in  the  best  society 
of  the  place.  Admiral  Sebree  had  been  governor  there  a 
few  years  before,  and  Parker  detailed  a  native  soldier  to 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  421 

walk  about  at  his  heels  as  orderly,  a  procedure  which 
Sebree  had  followed  when  he  himself  was  governor. 

On  the  first  night  we  were  there  Parker  invited  the  ad 
mirals  and  captains  of  the  fleet  to  a  dinner,  at  which  were 
present  Mrs.  Parker  and  the  officers  stationed  at  Pango- 
Pango,  with  their  wives.  The  governor's  house  stood  on 
a  high  and  beautiful  hill,  from  which  magnificent  views 
could  be  had  over  long  distances  and  in  all  directions 
when  the  weather  was  clear,  but  which  were  usually 
dimmed  and  shortened  by  the  prevalent  mists  and  rains. 
The  ocean  could  be  seen,  except  where  high  parts  of  the 
island  shut  it  off,  especially  "White  Face,"  a  high  moun 
tain  from  which  the  natives  thought  all  storms  proceeded. 

On  the  second  day  a  great  feast  was  given  to  the  officers 
and  men.  We  gathered  on  a  large  plain,  where  roast  pigs 
were  being  prepared.  The  ceremony  of  preparing .  the 
roast  pigs  was  most  important,  and  most  exciting  to  the 
natives;  for  the  reason  that  they  live  almost  entirely  on 
bananas,  yams,  and  other  vegetables,  and  meat  is  ex 
tremely  scarce.  Being  scarce,  it  was  naturally  prized. 
Roast  pig  in  particular  was  prized,  and  deemed  the  very 
finest  thing  to  eat  that  the  world  afforded. 

The  officers  of  the  fleet  sat  together,  and  near  them,  but 
somewhat  apart,  were  the  enlisted  men,  all  of  us  in  white. 
In  a  large  outer  circle  was  an  immense  concourse  of 
native  men,  women,  and  children.  Between  the  outer 
circle  and  the  inner  circle  where  we  sat  were  the  pigs,  be 
ing  roasted  under  the  direction  of  a  principal  chief. 
While  the  roasting  was  going  on,  other  chiefs  and  great 
men  of  the  tribes  made  speeches.  I  asked  Parker  what 
these  speeches  were  about;  and  he  told  me  that  for  the 
most  part  they  described  the  beauty  of  the  sunshine  and 
the  hills  and  the  waters,  and  the  power  of  the  gods  who 
control  them. 

Finally  the  pigs  were  done,  and  portions  were  served  to 
us  on  plates  as  we  sat  cross-legged  on  the  turf.  By  this 
time  the  crowd  had  become  much  excited.  Finally,  when 
we  had  been  all  served,  a  signal  was  given,  and  there  was 


422     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAK-ADMIRAL 

a  rush  of  the  crowd  toward  the  pigs.  There  was  no  fight 
ing  or  disorder  or  any  unpleasantness  whatever;  on  the 
contrary,  the  crowd  was  extremely  good-humored,  but 
they  did  want  roast  pig.  I  have  never  seen  such  hunger 
or  such  unrestrained  exhibitions  of  passion  in  a  crowd  as 
was  shown  by  that  crowd  for  that  pig. 

The  next  afternoon  we  were  given  a  war-dance.  There 
was  a  large  field,  on  the  side  of  which  were  some  benches. 
Admirals  and  captains  were  given  seats  on  the  front  row 
of  benches,  and  the  officers  and  enlisted  men  sat  on  the 
benches  behind.  As  we  were  walking  up  to  the  benches, 
some  young  women  were  brought  up,  and  each  of  the  cap 
tains  was  introduced  to  one  of  them,  and  told  that  she 
would  be  his  companion  on  the  benches.  Each  of  these 
young  women  took  the  right  hand  of  her  captain,  and  then 
we  captains  walked  along,  each  of  us  holding  the  hand  of 
his  partner.  I  think  we  all  acted  our  parts  as  if  we  were 
quite  accustomed  to  that  sort  of  thing,  except  Austin 
Knight,  who  was  the  captain  of  the  Washington.  Knight 
was  a  very  dignified  man,  an  extremely  proper  man  in  all 
his  deportment  and  conversation  and  modes  of  thought, 
and  probably  that  was  the  reason  why  he  looked  so  silly 
as  he  was  walking  along,  holding  the  hand  of  that  girl. 

The  war-dance  was  not  a  dance  in  our  meaning  of  the 
word ;  it  was  more  like  a  procession.  A  number  of  men, 
probably  more  than  a  hundred,  came  toward  us  in  gor 
geous  costumes,  brandishing  clubs,  shouting,  and  singing 
but  advancing,  not  at  a  walk  or  run,  but  by  executing 
some  curious  steps.  Meanwhile  some  women  seated  on 
the  ground  went  through  a  so-called  dance  also,  rising 
occasionally  to  their  feet.  It  was  noticeable  that  while 
they  were  seated  on  the  ground  the  movements  of  their 
arms  and  of  their  bodies  above  the  waist  were  very 
graceful;  but  that  as  soon  as  they  got  on  their  feet  and 
began  to  use  their  legs  and  feet,  they  were  extremely 
clumsy. 

We  found  the  Samoans  just  what  we  had  expected  them 
to  be,  large,  good-looking,  simple,  peaceful,  and  healthy. 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  423 

Comparatively  few  of  them  spoke  English,  and  few  of 
them  showed  any  sign  of  the  effects  of  civilization.  One 
of  their  curious  customs  was  that  in  every  tribe  there  was 
a  young  unmarried  woman  (called,  I  think,  a  taipoo)  who 
took  the  part  of  hostess  of  the  tribe  on  occasions  of  cere 
mony.  She  was  usually  the  daughter  of  a  chief,  but  not 
always  so ;  and  we  were  told  that  she  was  elected  by  the 
tribe  because  of  her  popularity,  good  looks,  and,  above  all, 
good  character.  After  having  been  elected  to  this  posi 
tion,  she  became  a  sort  of  ward  of  the  tribe,  and  the  tribe 
took  it  on  itself  to  care  for  her  in  every  way  and  to  select 
a  good  husband  for  her  from  among  the  sons  of  the  chiefs 
of  other  tribes.  It  was  considered  an  honor  for  a  man  to 
be  deemed  worthy  to  marry  a  taipoo. 

The  United  States  naval  surgeon  on  duty  there  told  me 
that  the  natives  had  a  great  deal  of  stomachic  and  in 
testinal  trouble,  due  to  their  having  to  eat  so  much  fruit 
and  vegetable  food,  in  order  to  get  sufficient  nourishment ; 
and  that  he  was  getting  splendid  experience  in  abdominal 
surgery.  ' '  Lo,  the  poor  Indian ! ' ' 

We  expected  to  find  some  colliers  in  Pango-Pango,  sent 
there  from  Hampton  Roads  to  coal  us ;  but  when  we  got 
there,  there  were  no  colliers,  and  this  alarmed  us  a  little, 
because  there  was  no  coal  in  Pango-Pango,  and  we  knew 
we  could  not  get  away  without  coal.  The  days  went  by, 
and  still  no  coal.  Meanwhile  another  steamer  did  not 
come  in  that  had  been  expected  before  we  had  arrived, 
and  on  board  of  which  was  the  chaplain  of  the  station, 
with  his  wife,  and  the  wife  of  one  of  the  officers.  We 
heard  afterward  that  the  steamer  was  wrecked  on  Christ 
mas  Island,  twelve  hundred  miles  northeast  of  us.  In  the 
days  of  anxiety  that  ensued  there  were  many  people  who 
deplored  the  fact  that  there  was  not  on  the  island  of 
Pango-Pango  any  wireless  telegraph. 

Finally  one  collier  came  in.  Swinburne  coaled  the 
ships  of  the  first  division  from  it,  and  started  for  Hono 
lulu  with  that  division  and  four  destroyers,  telling  Sebree 
to  coal  from  the  other  collier  and  follow.  The  other  col- 


424     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

Her  came  in  shortly  afterward,  much  to  our  relief,  and  we 
coaled  as  soon  as  possible.  Finally,  one  warm  afternoon, 
we  extricated  our  ships  from  the  narrow  waters  of  Pango- 
Pango  Bay,  and  stood  out  to  sea,  and  then  headed  to  the 
north;  and  we  watched  the  fading  from  our  view  of 
thatched  native  huts  and  green  fields  and  waving  palms, 
and  the  white  surf  on  the  beach  and  the  high  moun 
tains  covered  at  the  tops  with  clouds,  the  whole  softened 
and  dimmed  by  a  driving  tropical  rain. 

Half-way  to  Honolulu  we  were  struck  by  a  violent  gale, 
a  comparatively  rare  thing  in  those  parts.  This  made  us 
uncomfortable  in  the  big  ships  for  a  couple  of  days,  but  it 
made  the  people  in  the  destroyers  ten  times  more  uncom 
fortable.  I  have  never  had  service  in  a  destroyer  myself, 
and  so  I  have  never  been  able  to  understand  how  a  living 
human  being  can  endure  being  battered  and  hammered 
as  one  is  in  a  destroyer. 

When  we  got  to  Honolulu,  the  pilot  who  was  to  take  the 
Tennessee  did  not  appear.  My  recollection  is  that  I  was 
told  that  he  had  been  stricken  with  leprosy.  I  was  very 
sorry  for  any  man  who  was  stricken  with  leprosy ;  but  I 
was  not  so  sorry  for  him  at  that  minute  as  I  was  for  my 
self  when  I  realized  that  I  should  have  to  take  the  ship 
alongside  the  dock  without  any  guide,  counselor,  and 
friend.  Fortunately,  my  attention  had  been  very  much 
on  the  alert  when  I  had  gone  alongside  the  dock  before, 
with  the  pilot  on  the  bridge,  and  I  was  able  to  get  along 
side  just  as  well  without  him.  After  that  I  always  took 
the  ship  alongside  of  docks  without  any  pilot,  and  most  of 
the  other  captains  did  the  same.  A  few  days  after  that  I 
had  to  shift  the  ship  to  a  dock  farther  up  the  harbor. 
This  circumstance  did  not  bother  me  much  until  the  time 
came  to  leave,  and  the  pilot  did  not  appear.  Rather  than 
wait  for  him  then,  I  determined  to  take  the  ship  out  with 
out  his  assistance,  and  I  was  able  to  do  so  in  such  a  way  as 
to  receive  the  loudly  expressed  approbation  of  Admiral 
Sebree. 

We  started  from  Honolulu  about  the  middle  of  Novem- 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  425 

her  to  go  to  Magdalena  Bay  in  Lower  California,  Mexico, 
for  the  fleet's  annual  target-practice.  Before  going  to 
Samoa,  we  had  received  from  the  department  the  rules 
that  were  to  govern  the  target-practice ;  and  I  saw  at  once 
that  they  were  most  unfair  for  the  Tennessee  and  Wash 
ington,  because  we  were  made  to  fire  at  longer  distances 
and  at  higher  speeds  than  the  other  armored  cruisers. 
After  reading  the  rules  carefully,  I  saw  that  they  must 
have  been  written  by  some  one  who  did  not  have  a  clear 
understanding  of  the  relations  of  range  and  speed  to  the 
probability  of  hitting  a  target.  I  pointed  this  out  to 
Knight,  who  was  interested  as  much  as  I  in  having  the 
Tennessee  and  the  Washington  stand  high  on  the  list 
showing  the  order  of  excellence  of  the  ships  in  target 
practice ;  and  I  suggested  to  him  that  he  and  I  write  a  let 
ter  of  protest,  based  on  the  scientific  principles  of  gun 
nery.  Knight  agreed  with  me  that  I  was  correct,  but  he 
declined  to  join  in  a  protest.  At  first  I  decided  to  make  a 
protest  myself;  but  I  realized  that  it  would  do  no  good 
for  one  man  out  in  Samoa  to  write  a  letter  of  protest  to 
Washington.  I  then  decided  to  write  an  article  for  the 
Naval  Institute,  and  to  call  it  "A  Fair  Basis  for  Competi 
tion  in  Battle  Practice."  This  article  was  published  in 
the  Naval  Institute  in  December,  1908.  It  discussed  the 
subject  mathematically,  proved  how  utterly  unfair  and 
unscientific  the  rules  governing  the  target-practice  were, 
and  made  certain  recommendations  as  to  what  ought  to 
be  done  in  the  future.  The  article  was,  of  course,  too 
late  to  do  any  good  at  the  time,  but  most  of  its  recom 
mendations  were  carried  out  the  following  year. 

We  arrived  at  Magdalena  Bay  in  due  time,  and  went 
through  a  course  of  preliminary  practice.  I  think  naval 
officers  agree  that  Magdalena  Bay  has  the  best  climate  of 
any  place  in  the  world.  It  is  warm,  but  not  hot,  and  it 
has  good  weather  virtually  all  the  while.  Some  time  be 
fore  we  got  to  Magdalena  Bay,  Admiral  Swinburne 's  staff 
made  out  the  program  of  drills  and  exercises  which  we 
should  follow,  and  we  were  able  to  carry  it  out  without  a 


426     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

single  change.  I  was  interested  to  see  that  Magdalena 
Bay  corroborated  my  theory  that  in  places  where  there  is 
a  good  climate  nobody  wishes  to  live;  for  there  was  al 
most  nobody  whatever  living  anywhere  near  the  beautiful 
and  healthful  precincts  of  Magdalena  Bay. 

In  training  the  officers  and  crew  of  the  Tennessee,  ag 
gregating  nearly  one  thousand  men,  for  target  practice,  I 
laid  great  stress  on  getting  the  correct  range ;  and  I  was 
fortunate  in  finding  two  midshipmen,  Frank  Eussell  and 
Augustin  Beauregard,  who  were  of  the  proper  material 
from  which  to  make  good  range-finder  observers.  They 
were  both  young  men  of  that  peculiar  nervous  organiza 
tion  that  makes  one  a  good  marksman  with  the  musket. 
Eussell,  in  particular,  became  exceedingly  expert  and  ex 
ceedingly  reliable.  This  latter  quality  was  due  in  great 
measure  to  his  extraordinary  ability  to  retain  his  pres 
ence  of  mind  in  all  circumstances.  If  I  were  asked  to 
mention  the  man  who  seems  to  me  to  possess  the  faculty 
of  presence  of  mind  to  a  greater  degree  than  anybody  else 
I  have  ever  known,  I  should  unhesitatingly  reply,  *  *  Frank 
Eussell."  He  is  now  a  lieutenant-commander. 

While  alongside  the  dock  at  the  navy  yard  at  Bremer 
ton,  it  had  occurred  to  me  that  the  principal  difficulty  with 
the  range-finder  was  the  fact  that  its  zero,  or  initial 
point,  became  displaced  principally  because  of  a  minute 
bending  of  the  instrument;  and  that  it  would  be  easy  to 
make  a  correction  for  this  by  sighting  the  range-finder  at 
two  vertical  lines  that  were  as  far  apart  as  the  two  object- 
glasses.  In  the  range-finder  used  then,  these  object- 
glasses  were  fifty-four  inches  apart ;  so  I  had  Mr.  Eussell 
have  a  board  prepared  in  which  there  were  two  vertical 
lines  exactly  54  inches  apart.  After  this  had  been  pre 
pared,  I  sent  it  off  to  a  distance  of  about  five  hundred 
yards,  and  had  Mr.  Eussell  try  to  correct  his  range-finder 
by  it.  The  attempt  was  an  absolute  success.  Eealizing 
the  advantage  this  would  be  in  our  fleet  drills  and  target 
practice,  I  called  it  to  the  attention  of  Admiral  Sebree, 
and  he  had  a  range-finder  corrector  made  for  each  ship. 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  427 

Then  I  wrote  an  article  for  the  Naval  Institute,  which  ap 
peared  in  September,  1908,  called  ''To  Adjust  Range- 
finders  before  Battle,"  in  which  both  the  theoretical  and 
practical  parts  of  the  plan  were  described.  The  text  of 
this  article  was  published  by  the  Navy  Department  on 
February  6,  1909,  as  "Special  Order  No.  5,"  and  a  letter 
was  sent  to  me  from  the  department  expressing  its  appro 
bation,  and  stating  that  a  copy  of  that  letter  would  be 
placed  on  my  record  in  the  department. 

Admiral  Swinburne  had  range-finder  correctors  made 
for  all  the  ships  of  his  fleet;  and  so  did  the  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  Atlantic  fleet  on  the  recommendation  of  lieu 
tenant-commander  (now  Captain)  Ridley  McLean,  who 
was  the  fleet  gunnery-officer.  These  correctors  were 
found  to  be  of  great  value,  and  did  a  great  deal  to  con 
vince  the  navy  of  the  practicability  of  accurate  range-find 
ing.  They  continued  in  use  for  only  a  few  years,  how 
ever,  because  a  better  plan  was  brought  forward  by 
range-finder  manufacturers,  whereby  the  zero  could  be 
corrected  by  means  inside  of  the  range-finder  itself. 

On  the  day  of  day-target-practice  I  carried  out  the  rules 
of  the  practice,  of  course ;  but  I  had  Russell  make  range- 
finder  measurements  all  the  time,  and  I  had  a  man  record 
his  observations.  After  the  practice  was  over,  Russell 
and  I  went  over  the  records  carefully,  and  we  concluded 
that  the  ship  would  have  hit  the  target  of  tener  than  it  did 
if  we  had  used  the  range-finder  indications  entirely  and 
disregarded  altogether  the  observations  of  the  spotters. 

On  the  night  target  practice  a  target  was  anchored  at 
some  place  which  was  known  to  the  firing  ship  only  ap 
proximately,  and  the  firing  ship  was  to  advance  toward  it 
and  try  to  pick  it  up  with  its  search-lights.  It  was  neces 
sary  to  pick  up  the  target  at  a  great  distance,  because, 
if  a  ship  began  firing  at  too  short  a  distance,  the  record 
which  she  made  would  be  "penalized";  that  is,  a  certain 
proportion  of  it  would  be  subtracted.  Advancing  toward 
the  target  on  the  night  we  had  to  fire,  I  had  Russell  at  the 
range-finder,  not  far  above  my  head,  as  I  stood  on  the 


428     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

bridge.  Knight  was  standing  on  the  bridge  near  me  in 
order  to  get  points  which  would  help  him  when  his  ship 
came  to  fire  on  the  following  night.  We  were  going  nine 
teen  knots,  and  the  ship  was  trembling  all  over,  and  the 
wind  was  making  a  great  deal  of  noise,  and  the  foam  was 
being  dashed  up  by  our  bow.  I  could  see  nothing  in  the 
darkness  ahead  except  the  lights  of  the  West  Virginia, 
which  was  anchored  somewhere  on  our  port  bow. 
Finally  the  target  became  visible  under  the  rays  of  the 
searchlight.  Our  men  were  at  the  guns ;  everything  was 
ready ;  everything  was  at  tension.  I  waited  in  great  ex 
citement  for  Russell  to  sing  out  the  range,  but  not  a  sound 
did  he  make.  The  minutes  passed,  and  we  were  getting 
closer  and  closer  to  the  target  at  the  rate  of  nineteen  knots 
an  hour.  Finally  I  could  stand  it  no  longer,  and  called 
up,  "What  is  the  range,  Russell ?"  Not  a  sound  in  reply. 
"What  is  the  range,  Russell?"  Not  a  sound.  Again 
and  again  I  called,  ' '  What  is  the  range ! ' '  Finally  came 
the  answer,  perfectly  clear  and  cool  and  slow,  but  giving  a 
range  which  I  realized  at  once  was  too  short  to  make  it 
wise  for  me  to  fire. 

I  saw  instantly  that  I  must  get  the  ship  off  the  range 
course,  and  steam  away  and  come  back  and  try  it  again. 

"Starboard,"  I  ordered. 

"Starboard,  sir,"  answered  the  quartermaster.  The 
ship's  bow  began  slowly  to  move  to  the  left  in  the  dark 
ness  toward  the  lights  of  the  West  Virginia,  which  I  saw 
were  closer  than  I  had  supposed. 

"Do  you  think  she  will  make  it,  Quartermaster?" 

"I  don't  know,  sir,"  was  the  reply. 

"Port,"  I  ordered. 

"Port,"  was  the  answer. 

"Back  the  starboard  engine." 

"Back  the  starboard  engine,  sir." 

But  our  bow  continued  to  swing  farther  and  farther 
to  the  left,  closer  and  closer  to  the  direction  of  the  West 
Virginia,  while  we  tore  through  the  water  with  unabated 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  429 

speed.  I  did  not  know  exactly  how  far  away  she  was ;  but 
I  saw  that  if  she  were  as  close  as  she  might  be,  nothing 
now  could  prevent  the  Tennessee  from  striking  her  fair 
on  the  starboard  side,  and  cutting  her  literally  in  two. 
Finally,  the  Tennessee  stopped  swinging  to  the  left,  and 
then  began  to  swing  to  the  right,  and  I  knew  that  the 
danger  was  past.  In  half  a  minute  more  I  had  the  satis 
faction  of  leaving  behind  our  port  beam  the  lights  of  a 
ship  carrying  nearly  a  thousand  men,  some  of  whom  I 
could  hear  talking  and  laughing  and  singing  about  the 
decks.  This  episode  stands  out  with  more  painful  dis 
tinctness  than  any  other  in  my  memory. 

After  the  records  of  that  target  practice  were  made  by 
the  Navy  Department,  the  Tennessee  stood  number  eight 
in  the  list  of  nearly  thirty  ships,  a  most  honorable  stand 
ing  considering  the  fact  that  we  had  been  unfairly  handi 
capped. 

My  continued  insistence  on  the  use  of  the  range-finder 
was  regarded  as  an  eccentricity,  and  was  a  source  of  con 
siderable  innocent  merriment  among  the  officers  of  the 
ship.  On  Christmas  day  the  wardroom  gave  a  Christmas 
dinner,  and  invited  the  captain,  as  wardrooms  usually  do 
on  Christmas  day.  Toward  the  end  of  the  dinner  Assist 
ant-Surgeon  Kaufman  read  a  "poem,"  which  was  the 
joint  work  of  the  two  poets  of  the  mess,  Dr.  Kaufman  and 
Lieutenant  Ralston  Holmes,  Sebree's  flag-secretary. 
The  poem  was  as  follows : 

"THE  CAPTAIN  OF  THE  CRUISER  TENNESSEE 

"  The  air  was  full  of  whizzing  shell, 
From  the  enemy  on  the  lee; 
In  fact,  the  atmosphere  felt  like  hell 
On  the  bridge  of  the  Tennessee. 
And  the  cruiser  captain's  brow  was  hot, 
And  he  used  words  loud  and  strange, 
As  he  called  aloft  to  the  fighting-top 
To  find  out  the  latest  range. 


430     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

"  Then  the  cruiser  captain's  right-hand  man, 
The  cruiser's  range-finder  lad, 
Said  he  had  the  range  when  the  fight  began, 
But  the  fog  made  his  readings  bad. 
And  the  cruiser's  captain  thought  awhile, 
And  he  sent  for  his  glass  and  a  log, 
And  divided  a  pint  by  a  cubic  mile, 
And  measured  the  range  through  the  fog. ' ' 

We  left  Magdalena  Bay  about  the  middle  of  November 
and  started  for  the  port  of  Lota,  near  the  southern  end  of 
Chile.  On  the  way  down  we  stopped  at  Panama.  The 
construction  of  the  Panama  Canal  was  about  half  done, 
and  many  of  the  officers  and  men  took  the  trip  to  Colon 
and  back.  I  was  among  these,  and  we  found  the  trip  in 
teresting  in  the  highest  possible  degree.  We  had  never 
seen  civil  engineering  works  of  such  magnitude,  and  we 
had  never  seen  any  kind  of  work  carried  on  with  better 
evidences  of  foresight  and  understanding.  It  did  not 
seem  to  us  as  evidencing  any  special  genius,  but  as  evi 
dencing  perfectly  that  splendid  efficiency  and  complete 
ness  that  is  characteristic  of  military  work  in  general, 
and  was  characteristic  of  the  work  which  Colonel  Goethals 
was  doing  in  particular.  The  atmosphere  was  military; 
everything  was  clean,  precise,  orderly,  and  energetic. 

I  found  Colon  enormously  changed  from  the  Colon  of 
my  previous  visits.  Instead  of  disorder,  sickness,  dirt, 
and  a  general  air  of  misery  and  desperation,  there  were 
order,  health,  cleanliness,  and  a  general  air  of  happiness 
and  hope.  To  our  amazement,  we  even  saw  boys  playing 
baseball.  We  were  even  able  to  find  a  restaurant  and  get 
a  good,  clean  lunch. 

From  Panama  we  went  to  Lota,  skirting  the  coast  fairly 
close  all  the  way  down,  and  indulging  in  numerous  tactical 
drills  in  the  forenoons  and  afternoons.  The  Tennessee, 
as  flag-ship  of  the  second  division,  had  perhaps  the  most 
difficult  part  in  the  exercises ;  so  that  I  was  much  gratified 
when  the  following  wireless  telegraph  message  was  re 
ceived  at  the  end  of  one  day 's  drills : 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  431 

For  Sebree :  Congratulate  you  on  your  flagship 's  good  work. 
When  we  all  get  up  to  her  standing,  we  can  make  drills  shorter. 

SWINBURNE. 

While  in  Panama  I  had  had  rigged  over  our  stern  an 
automatic  device  that  showed  to  the  ship  astern,  both  by 
day  and  night,  the  exact  position  of  our  rudder.  This 
was  found  to  be  of  great  assistance  by  the  ship  astern  in 
regulating  her  own  movements.  Naturally,  I  was  much 
pleased  with  its  success,  and  I  devised  another  arrange 
ment  whereby  we  could  automatically  show  also  the  speed 
and  direction  at  which  our  engines  were  moving.  Before 
I  started  on  this,  however,  I  wrote  an  official  letter  to  the 
department,  reporting  the  success  of  my  rudder  indicator, 
and  my  letter  received  the  favorable  indorsement  of  both 
Admiral  Sebree  and  Admiral  Swinburne.  The  reply  of 
the  department  was  an  order  to  take  it  out  of  the  ship  im 
mediately.  I  did  so,  and  abandoned  at  the  same  time  the 
idea  of  my  engine-indicator. 

Lota  is  the  center  of  the  coal-region  of  Chile  and  the 
site  also  of  the  principal  Chilean  naval  station.  Our  stay 
was  pleasant.  One  of  the  places  of  interest  was  the  estate 
of  Senora  Cousifio,  who  owned  the  coal-mines,  but  lived 
most  of  the  time  in  Paris.  Lunch  was  served  to  the  of 
ficers  one  afternoon  in  the  beautiful  grounds  of  her  estate, 
and  afterward  we  walked  through  her  picture-galleries. 
Many  of  the  paintings  were  extremely  large  and  ex 
tremely  good,  and  represented  events  in  the  times  of  the 
conquest  of  South  America  by  the  Spaniards.  Some  of 
the  pictures  were  exciting.  One  represented  a  woman 
dashing  out  the  brains  of  a  child  against  a  tree,  saying,  as 
the  story  ran,  that  she  would  not  be  the  mother  of  the 
son  of  a  coward.  I  think  the  husband  was  a  chief  who 
yielded  to  the  Spaniards  more  readily  than  the  wife 
thought  he  should  have  done. 

We  were  told  that  at  this  time  there  was  trouble  be 
tween  the  workmen  in  the  navy-yard  and  the  Chilean  Gov 
ernment.  We  were  told  that  it  was  a  common  practice 


432     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

for  workmen  to  become  so  drunk  on  Sunday  that  they 
could  not  go  to  work  on  Monday,  and  that  the  workmen 
regarded  this  practice  as  so  natural  and  proper  that  they 
resented  a  plan  which  they  heard  the  Government  was  go 
ing  to  enforce,  of  cutting  off  their  Monday  pay  if  they  did 
not  work  on  Monday.  We  were  told  that  the  Government 
had  not  up  to  that  time  reduced  their  pay  when  the  work 
men  were  absent  on  Mondays,  but  that  the  workmen  heard 
that  the  Government  intended  to  do  so,  and  that  they  were 
expressing  their  indignation  most  emphatically.  I  never 
heard  how  the  incident  ended. 

From  Lota  the  fleet  steamed  north,  Swinburne  taking 
the  first  division  to  Valparaiso,  and  Sebree  taking  the 
second  division  to  Coquimbo.  On  the  evening  of  Janu 
ary  20,  1909,  as  I  was  finishing  my  dinner  in  the  custom 
ary  solitude  of  a  captain's  cabin,  the  orderly  reported  to 
me  that  there  was  a  fire  on  shore.  Going  on  deck,  I  joined 
Admiral  Sebree,  who  had  just  arrived  there.  He  ordered 
me  to  send  a  signal  to  the  four  ships  to  send  their  fire- 
brigades  on  shore  immediately.  After  giving  the  neces 
sary  orders  on  board  the  Tennessee,  I  told  the  admiral 
that  I  thought  it  would  be  a  good  plan  to  put  the  four 
fire-brigades  under  one  officer,  and  I  asked  his  permission 
to  go  ashore  and  assume  the  entire  command. 

He  assented  at  once,  and  in  a  few  minutes  I  was  steam 
ing  ashore  in  his  barge.  While  captain  of  the  yard  in 
Philadelphia,  I  had  been  in  charge  of  all  the  fire-drills, 
and  the  experience  I  gained  then  was  a  great  value  to  me 
this  night.  When  I  landed  at  the  dock,  I  found  that  the 
fire-brigades  of  the  four  ships  were  already  ashore,  and 
that  they  were  gathered  around  a  large  wooden  hotel 
which  was  burning  like  a  match.  The  hotel  stood  on  the 
plaza  of  the  town,  and  on  this  plaza  a  good  deal  of  furni 
ture,  taken  out  of  the  hotel,  had  been  piled.  Following 
my  practice  at  the  Philadelphia  Navy-yard,  I  had  a  sailor 
follow  me  carrying  a  large  American  flag.  It  was  now 
dark,  but  the  flames  of  the  burning  hotel  were  so  bright 
that  I  was  quickly  recognized,  and  found  no  difficulty  in 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  433 

assuming  entire  control.  I  threw  a  cordon  of  marines 
and  sailors  around  the  hotel  at  once  to  keep  off  the  crowd, 
and  I  put  small  detachments  in  the  various  houses  near  by 
to  prevent  looting.  I  saw  at  once  that  the  fire  depart 
ment  of  the  town  could  accomplish  little,  not  only  because 
they  were  insufficient  in  numbers,  but  because  the  training 
and  uniforms  of  the  bomberos,  or  firemen,  seemed  to  have 
been  directed  almost  wholly  to  spectacular  effect. 

After  making  these  dispositions,  which  required  only 
a  few  minutes,  I  turned  my  attention  to  the  hotel  itself ; 
and  what  was  my  amazement  to  see  on  the  roof  of  the 
hotel,  under  which  a  fierce  fire  was  raging  and  threaten 
ing  to  bring  down  the  roof  at  any  minute,  the  stalwart 
figure  of  Lieutenant-Commander  Charles  F.  Hughes  and 
some  sailors  from  the  Washington.  Of  course  Hughes 
had  no  business  to  be  in  such  a  place  as  that  because  it 
was  only  a  matter  of  a  short  time  when  the  roof  would 
fall  into  the  fire  below,  and  carry  with  it  anybody  who 
happened  to  be  on  top.  Realizing  the  peril  in  which 
Hughes  and  his  men  were,  I  determined  to  go  to  the  roof 
myself  and  give  him  my  orders  in  person.  The  hotel  was 
only  three  stories  high,  and  a  long  ladder  extended  to  the 
roof  from  the  street.  When  I  started  to  go  up  this 
ladder,  I  had  a  dim  consciousness  that  there  were  a  good 
many  men  yelling  at  me,  but  I  could  not  hear  what  they 
said.  One  reason  why  I  could  not  hear  was  the  great 
noise  going  on,  and  the  other  was  the  extreme  difficulty  I 
had  in  mounting  the  ladder.  The  latter  was  so  long  and 
so  light,  that  my  endeavors  to  mount  it  made  it  act  like  a 
spring,  and  I  had  a  curious  feeling  while  going  up  that 
ladder  that  I  must  be  presenting  a  ridiculous  appearance. 
Finally,  after  a  time  which  seemed  to  me  unduly  long,  I 
arrived  on  the  roof,  and  encountered  a  heat  that  was  most 
uncomfortable,  and  a  general  atmosphere  of  tension. 
Hughes  and  the  men  with  him  had  some  wet  clothes  which 
they  had  wrapped  around  their  heads,  and  they  were  try 
ing  to  shove  some  pieces  of  hose  through  a  hole  in  the 
roof  and  throw  water  down  on  the  fire  below.  The  im- 


434     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

possibility  of  putting  out  the  fire,  and  the  urgency  of  get 
ting  those  men  off  of  the  roof  before  they  fell  into  the  fire, 
were  so  great,  that  the  orders  which  I  gave  to  Hughes 
were  not  only  emphatic  in  the  tone  employed,  but,  I  fear, 
deplorable  in  the  language  in  which  they  were  expressed. 

We  were  not  able  to  save  the  hotel,  but  we  were  able  to 
keep  the  fire  from  spreading.  There  was  a  brisk  breeze 
blowing  that  night,  and  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  prompt 
and  effective  action  of  our  sailors,  a  large  portion  of 
Coquimbo  would  have  been  destroyed.  The  fire  depart 
ment  of  the  town  was  neither  large  enough  nor  well 
trained  enough  to  do  much  good,  and  the  people  of  the 
town  became  so  excited  that  they  could  render  no  assist 
ance. 

I  had  no  serious  mishaps  that  evening,  though  I  had 
one  or  two  narrow  escapes.  A  ridiculous  misadventure 
happened  to  me  when  a  wall  near  by  began  to  fall.  Some 
Chilean  threw  his  arms  around  me,  shouting,  "Oh,  Com- 
mandante,"  and  jerked  me  backward  with  such  violence 
as  to  throw  me  on  the  ground  into  a  pile  of  dirt  and  rub 
bish.  The  only  practical  result  of  this  was  that  I  lost  a 
pretty  sleeve-button  that  I  had  worn  in  my  cuff. 

We  had  an  exciting  time  for  about  three  hours,  and  a 
number  of  the  officers  and  men  of  the  squadron,  especially 
Lieutenant-Commander  C.  F.  Hughes,  behaved  with  great 
gallantry.  I  made  an  official  report  of  the  facts  to  Se- 
bree,  recommending  a  few  for  letters  of  commendation. 
Sebree  mentioned  them  all  and  me  besides,  and  we  all  got 
good  complimentary  letters,  which  were  placed  on  our  rec 
ords  in  the  department.  One  paragraph  in  my  letter 
read : 

The  report  [of  Admiral  Sebree]  states  that  the  work  under 
your  direction  was  promptly  and  efficiently  done,  and  had  it 
not  been  for  the  timely  and  valuable  assistance  rendered,  a  large 
portion  of  the  northern  part  of  Coquimbo  would  probably  have 
been  destroyed.  The  able  and  thorough  manner  in  which  you 
directed  the  working  details  on  shore,  and  the  absence  of  con 
fusion  or  undue  excitement,  together  with  the  fact  that  your 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  435 

duties   often   required   your  presence   in   dangerous   positions, 
merits  and  receives  the  Department's  hearty  commendation. 

In  January,  1909, 1  published  in  the  Naval  Institute  an 
article  called  "A  Simple  Electric  Steering  Gear."  In 
this  article  I  pointed  out  the  great  advantages  that  elec 
tricity  would  have  over  steam  if  it  were  not  for  the  diffi 
culty,  which  up  to  that  time  had  been  found  insuperable, 
of  using  the  "floating-lever"  principle  in  electric  mechan 
ism,  although  the  floating-lever  principle  was  easily 
utilized  in  steam  mechanism.  I  recounted  the  troubles 
that  I  had  met  in  attempting  it — troubles  which  I  had 
found  so  great  that,  although  I  held  the  basic  patent  on 
mechanism  which  adapted  the  floating-lever  to  electr-ic 
mechanism,  I  had  never  been  able  to  make  it  work  suc 
cessfully;  neither  had  the  General  Electric  Company  and 
neither  had  the  Navy  Department.  The  Navy  Depart 
ment  had  made  a  serious  effort  by  trying  to  adapt  it  to 
the  steering  of  the  monitor  Arkansas  when  I  commanded 
that  vessel.  Before  writing  the  article,  I  had  discon 
nected  the  floating  lever  from  the  steam  steering-gear  of 
the  Tennessee,  and  had  the  quartermaster  steer  the  ship 
without  it  for  more  than  an  hour.  As  a  result  of  that  trial, 
I  had  become  satisfied  that  it  was  perfectly  feasible  to 
abandon  the  floating-lever  principle,  but  that  it  would  be 
hard  for  men  accustomed  to  the  floating  lever  to  steer  a 
ship  without  it  until  they  had  learned  how;  and  so,  at  the 
end  of  my  article  I  suggested  the  possibility  of  using  a 
simple  electric  steering-gear.  One  sentence  ran,  "Why 
not  have  a  simple  controller,  like  those  in  all  our  trolley- 
cars  and  ships  which  we  all  know  how  to  use?"  I  be 
lieve  this  idea  has  been  carried  out  recently  in  some  of  our 
new  ships. 

About  this  time  my  attention  was  attracted  to  an  ex 
tremely  able  article  in  Lord  Brassey's  Naval  Annual  for 
1906,  which  had  escaped  my  attention.  It  was  written  by 
Commander  Charles  N.  Robinson,  R.  N.,  and  was  called, 
" The  Gunnery  Practice  of  the  Fleet." 


436     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAB-ADMIEAL 

The  chapter  was  largely  historical,  and  began  by  re 
citing  an  Admiralty  circular,  dated  January  31,  1906,  in 
which  their  lordships  expressed  great  satisfaction  with 
the  gunnery  practice  of  1905,  and  attributed  the  success 
ful  results  mostly  to  "The  great  interest  and  keen  spirit 
displayed  by  officers  and  men,  the  general  introduction 
and  use  of  additional  instructional  appliances,  and  the  im 
proved  system  of  gunnery  training  now  in  operation." 

Commander  Eobinson  said  of  this  memorandum  "It 
marks  indeed  the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  the  conditions 
and  aspects  of  naval  gunnery." 

I  should  like  to  quote  the  whole  of  this  interesting  chap 
ter,  because  I  can  hardly  show  otherwise  how  perfectly  its 
writer  was  convinced  that  the  excellent  gunnery  of  that 
time  was  due  wholly  to  a  certain  system  of  training  faith 
fully  carried  out,  for  which  the  entire  credit  belonged  to 
the  British  Navy,  led  by  Admiral  Sir  Percy  Scott.  The 
letter  went  into  detail  as  to  the  improvements  that  had 
gone  on,  and  led  up  to  the  fact  that  on  the  target  practice 
of  the  Scylla,  the  captain  of  that  ship,  Sir  Percy  Scott, 
"Had  struck  out  a  line  of  his  own." 

Naturally  this  letter  irritated  me  a  great  deal.  As  a 
result,.  I  wrote  an  article  for  the  Naval  Institute,  called 
* '  The  Invention  and  Development  of  the  Naval  Telescope 
Sight,"  which  appeared  in  June,  1909.  One  paragraph 
read  as  follows : 

The  present  writer  has  no  desire  to  rob  the  British  Navy  of 
any  of  the  credit  which  it  justly  merits  for  the  marked  improve 
ment  in  naval  gunnery  during  the  past  few  years;  neither  has 
he  any  desire  to  rob  Sir  Percy  Scott  of  any  credit  that  he  has 
received ;  because  he  has  received  no  more  credit  than  he  de 
serves.  All  the  praise  that  Sir  Percy  Scott  has  received,  and 
all  the  official  commendations,  promotions  and  decorations  that 
he  and  the  officers  whom  he  inspired  have  received,  both  in  the 
British  Navy  and  in  other  navies,  have  been  justly  earned.  But, 
nevertheless,  the  present  writer  believes  that  he  can  prove  that 
the  credit  for  the  accurate  naval  gunnery  of  the  present  day 
does  not  primarily  belong  to  the  British  Navy,  but  to  the  Ameri- 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  437 

can  Navy;  and  that  the  naval  gunnery  of  today  did  not  have 
its  birth  on  board  the  H.  M.  S.  Scylla,  on  the  Mediterranean  Sta 
tion,  at  some  time  after  1898,  but  on  board  the  IT.  S.  S.  York- 
town,  at  Unalaska,  on  September  22,  1892. 

I  then  gave  a  history  of  the  invention  and  development 
of  the  sight,  with  illustrations  of  the  earlier  forms,  and 
diagrams  of  the  results  of  the  earlier  target  practice  in 
1892  and  1894.  The  article  closed  with  the  following 
paragraphs : 

Returning  to  the  article  in  Brassey  that  seems  to  have  been 
written  under  the  impression  that  "the  new  gunnery"  originated 
elsewhere  than  in  the  American  Navy,  it  may  be  pointed  out 
that  the  American  Navy  was  the  first  to  adopt,  not  only  the 
naval  telescope  sight,  but  also  the  electrical  range  indicator. 
The  first  ship  to  be  equipped  with  electrical  range  indicators 
was  the  U.  S.  S.  San  Francisco,  which  had  an  experimental  set, 
consisting  of  one  transmitter  and  two  receivers.  The  test  lasted 
one  year,  from  July  1893,  till  July  1894.  The  test  was  success 
ful,  the  electrical  range  indicator  was  adopted,  and  in  June 
1896,  the  U.  S.  S.  Cincinnati,  Maine,  Texas,  Indiana,  Massachu 
setts  and  Oregon  had  been  equipped  with  them  throughout. 
The  multiple  principle  of  the  range  indicator  then  used  is  still 
employed;  though  the  form  of  the  instruments  has  materially 
changed. 

That  the  success  of  the  naval  telescope  sight  and  electrical 
range  indicator  in  our  navy  was  known  to  foreign  navies  be 
fore  1898,  is  suggested  by  the  facts  that  it  could  not  possibly 
have  been  kept  secret,  and  that  descriptions  and  drawings  of 
both,  with  a  statement  of  the  success  achieved,  were  published  in 
the  Naval  Institute  in  June  1896. 

Referring  again  to  the  impression  evidenced  in  the  article  in 
Brassey  that  the  new  gunnery  originated  elsewhere  than  in  the 
American  Navy,  it  may  be  pointed  out  that  the  first  ship  to 
use  fire  control  from  aloft  in  battle  was  the  U.  S.  S.  Petrel,  at 
the  battle  of  Manila  May  1,  1898. 

This  article  attracted  a  good  deal  of  attention  from  the 
public  press,  the  scientific  magazines,  and  the  army  and 
navy  publications.  It  was  a  distinct  challenge,  and  yet 


438     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAB-ADMIRAL 

not  one  word  of  objection  to  the  statements  and  claims 
which  it  embodied  have  I  ever  seen  in  print  or  writing  or 
heard  expressed  orally  by  any  person. 

In  February,  1909,  the  monthly  pilot  chart  issued  by 
the  United  States  Hydrographic  Office,  and  used  by  the 
mariners  of  all  nations,  had  printed  on  its  back  a  full 
description  of  my  method  of  "Navigating  without 
Horizon,"  which  I  had  described  in  the  Naval  Institute 
in  September,  1907.  In  speaking  of  this,  The  Army  and 
Navy  Journal  said,  in  its  issue  of  February  27,  1909, 
"The  authoritative  publishing  of  this  method  brings  it  to 
the  attention  of  mariners  the  world  over ;  and  the  method 
seems  to  be  a  permanent  addition  to-  nautical  science 
which  will  last  as  long  as  men  go  down  to  the  sea  in 
ships.  It  reflects  credit  on  our  entire  navy  as  well  as  on 
Captain  Fiske." 

The  Navy  Department  wrote  me  a  letter  of  commenda 
tion  for  inventing  and  developing  this  system  and  had  the 
letter  placed  on  my  record  in  the  department. 

From  Coquimbo  we  went  to  Callao,  Peru,  joining  the 
flag  of  the  commander-in-chief  before  arriving,  so  that 
the  fleet  anchored  together  behind  the  island  of  San 
Lorenzo.  Some  years  before,  the  story  ran,  a  British  and 
an  American  ship  were  anchored  in  the  harbor,  and  the 
captain  and  officers  of  the  British  ship  had  what  now 
would  be  called  a  very  "wet  dinner"  on  board  the  Ameri 
can  ship,  a  most  hazardous  thing  to  do  for  the  Britishers, 
because  the  ship  was  to  go  to  sea  at  midnight.  Whenever 
a  ship  is  at  anchor,  it  has  a  white  light  hoisted  forward. 
In  the  days  before  electric  lights  were  put  into  ships,  this 
light  was  lowered  when  the  ship  got  under  way.  From 
some  oversight  this  was  not  done  that  night,  and  the  cap 
tain,  seeing  the  light  of  his  own  ship  ahead,  and  thinking 
that  it  was  the  light  on  the  island  of  San  Lorenzo,  gave 
the  order,  "Port."  The  ship's  bow  moved  to  the  right; 
but  so  did  the  light.  "Hard  aport!"  ordered  the  cap 
tain.  "Hard  aport,"  replied  the  quartermaster;  but  the 
more  the  ship 's  bow  moved  to  the  right,  the  more  the  light 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  439 

moved  to  the  right.  The  story  is  that  the  ship  circled 
round  the  harbor  three  times,  until  some  one  hauled  down 
the  light. 

One  morning  Captain  Cottman  and  I  walked  from 
Callao  to  Lima.  Cottman  was  the  captain  of  the  Cali 
fornia.  The  walk  was  not  very  delightful  or  interesting, 
and  so  we  amused  ourselves  by  trying  to  talk  Spanish  to 
the  natives.  If  one  talks  a  foreign  language,  even  not 
very  well,  with  an  educated  person,  that  educated  person 
will  probably  understand  a  great  part  of  what  he  says ; 
but  if  one  talks  with  an  uneducated  person,  he  finds  much 
more  difficulty  in  making  himself  understood.  Perhaps 
this  was  the  reason  that  we  did  not  make  ourselves  well 
understood;  however,  we  did  not  succeed  very  well,  but 
each  of  us  extracted  considerable  satisfaction  from  seeing 
what  poor  success  the  other  one  had,  and  in  calling  his  at 
tention  to  the  fact. 

On  the  way  up  to  Lima  I  told  Cottman  my  experience 
in  noting  that  the  plaza  always  looked  the  same,  no  mat 
ter  at  what  time  of  year  I  had  gone  there,  and  I  described 
to  Cottman  the  way  the  plaza  would  look.  When  we  ar 
rived  there,  the  plaza  looked  exactly  as  I  had  predicted. 
There  was  the  same  dim  sunlight,  the  same  gentle  breeze, 
the  same  pale-blue  sky,  and  the  same  handsome  cathe 
dral;  and  it  seemed  almost  that  the  same  priests  and 
nuns,  and  mantilla-covered  women  and  swarthy  Spanish- 
American  gentlemen  and  Peruvian  Indians  were  walking 
about  that  I  had  always  seen  there  before. 

Cottman  and  I  were  hungry  after  our  walk,  and  we  en 
joyed  our  lunch  at  the  hotel  extremely.  Toward  the  close 
of  lunch,  I  said : 

' '  Let  's  have  another  pint  of  that  Spanish  wine ;  I  think 
it 's  pretty  good." 

"I  won't  take  another  drop,"  said  Cottman.  "I  have 
had  a  little  too  much  already.  I  know  that,  because  I 
want  to  smoke.  I  can  always  tell  when  I  have  had  enough 
to  drink  by  that  sign. ' ' 

The  two  divisions  separated  shortly  afterward.     The 


440     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

second  division,  going  north,  stopped  at  a  number  of  the 
ports  on  the  west  coast  of  Central  America.  The  most  in 
teresting  place  was  Costa  Rica,  because  it  was  the  most 
distinctive  and  the  best.  The  forenoon  after  we  an 
chored,  the  governor  came  off  to  the  ship  with  a  large 
number  of  men  and  a  few  women.  About  a  dozen  were 
asked  into  the  admiral's  cabin,  and  I  was  asked  in  to  help 
entertain  them.  Sebree  supplied  champagne  and  cigars. 
They  all  took  some  champagne,  but  very  few  took  cigars. 
I  expressed  my  surprise  to  one  of  the  gentlemen  who 
spoke  English  very  well,  as  they  all  did ;  and  he  made  an 
answer  which  surprised  me  greatly.  It  was  to  the  effect 
that,  while  most  Spanish-Americans  smoked  a  great  deal, 
the  Costa  Ricans  of  the  educated  class  smoked  hardly  at 
all,  because  they  had  been  taught  in  school  that  it  was  not 
good  for  men  to  smoke.  He  added  that  the  lower  classes, 
however,  smoked  like  other  Spanish- Americans. 

Costa  Rica  was  evidently  a  real  democracy.  When  the 
party  left,  some  went  in  our  steam  launch,  and  some  in 
the  sailing-launch,  which  wras  towed  by  it.  I  expected,  of 
course,  that  the  governor  would  go  in  the  steam  launch, 
and  sit  in  comfort  on  the  cushions  in  the  stern.  But  he 
declined  to  do  this,  and  got  into  the  sailing-launch  with  the 
greater  part  of  his  company. 

The  governor  invited  Captain  Knight  and  me  to  go 
ashore  one  afternoon  and  see  the  town.  We  were  glad  to 
do  this,  although  we  knew  that  the  act  of  getting  out  of 
the  boat  on  to  the  dock  would  be  one  requiring  consider 
ably  agility  and  loss  of  dignity,  because  the  water  was 
always  extremely  rough  at  the  dock.  We  passed  the  or 
deal  in  safety,  however,  and  spent  one  of  the  most  inter 
esting  afternoons,  we  both  agreed,  we  had  ever  spent. 
This  was  not  because  of  any  magnificence  of  natural 
scenery,  or  any  beauty  or  splendor  in  the  town;  but  on 
account  of  the  character  of  the  people  and  their  view  of 
life.  For  instance,  in  speaking  of  the  President  of  Costa 
Rica,  the  people  we  met  did  not  speak  of  him  as  a  man  of 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  441 

great  ability  or  shrewdness  or  political  skill;  but  as  a 
good  man,  and  a  man  who  did  everything  he  could  for  the 
people  of  Costa  Rica.  As  we  walked  through  the  streets, 
the  people  who  met  the  governor  greeted  him  pleasantly, 
but  not  at  all  obsequiously;  they  greeted  him  as  a  man 
whom  they  esteemed  and  liked,  much  as  one  greets  a 
bishop.  The  things  which  the  Costa  Rican  gentlemen 
pointed  out  to  us  as  the  objects  of  interest  were  the 
schools  and  other  public  works,  such  as  hospitals, 
churches,  etc.  At  one  time  I  said  to  the  governor  as  we 
were  walking  through  the  town:  ''Where  were  you  born, 
sir!" 

"Right  here,"  he  said,  striking  his  knuckles  against  a 
brick  house,  "I  was  born  right  in  this  very  house." 

A  pleasant  cruise  north,  in  which  the  fleet  was  exercised 
a  great  deal  at  all  sorts  of  tactical  drills,  brought  us  to 
San  Francisco. 

' '  Breathes  there  a  man  with  soul  so  dead, 
Who  never  to  himself  has  said, 
When  home  his  footsteps  he  has  turned, 
From  wandering  on  a  foreign  strand, 
This  is  my  own,  my  native  land?" 

How  good  it  was  to  get  back  to  God's  country  again, 
and  to  be  with  people  of  one's  own  kind,  who  spoke  his 
own  language  and  had  the  same  cast  of  features !  How 
beautiful  San  Francisco  looked !  How  inspiring  was  the 
outline  of  the  mountains  against  the  sky,  and  how  splen 
did  were  the  sunsets  behind  Mount  Tamalpais ! 

After  a  brief  stay  in  San  Francisco,  the  second  division 
went  north  to  the  Bremerton  navy  yard  for  repairs  and 
alterations,  especially  in  the  fire-control  system. 

Only  two  incidents  of  the  trip  made  much  impression  on 
my  memory.  One  was  getting  under  way  in  the  narrow 
harbor  of  Port  Townsend  about  one  o'clock  in  the  morn 
ing,  and  leading  the  division  out  of  the  harbor.  The 
other  was  making  that  turn  of  the  bend  near  the  navy 


442     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

yard  and  then  going  alongside  the  dock.  I  conducted 
all  three  operations  successfully,  however,  and  got  the 
ship  tied  up  just  before  noon. 

I  treated  myself  to  a  glass  of  wine  at  lunch  that  day, 
and  I  stretched  my  legs  out  under  the  table  and  leaned 
back  in  my  chair  with  the  pleasant  feeling  that  I  had 
passed  successfully  the  first  half  of  the  most  difficult 
ordeal  a  naval  officer  has  to  pass,  his  * '  captain 's  cruise. ' ' 


CHAPTER  XXX 

THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE 

Second  Year 

MY  wife  was  much  better  by  this  time,  which  was  the 
month  of  June,  and  she  and  my  daughter  joined  me 
shortly  after  the  ships  reached  the  navy  yard.  I  had  a 
pleasant  suite  engaged  for  them  at  the  Hotel  Sorrento. 
The  Sorrento  proved  to  be  one  of  the  pleasantest  hotels 
we  had  ever  lived  in.  One  of  its  delightful  features  was 
the  large  dining-room  in  the  upper  story,  from  the  win 
dows  of  which  magnificent  views  could  always  be  had  in 
the  daytime  of  blue  waters  and  distant  mountains,  of 
which  the  peaks  sometimes  stood  out  sharp  and  clear, 
and  sometimes  were  shrouded  in  dense,  white  clouds. 

Most  of  the  work  to  be  done  on  the  TeMnessee's  fire- 
control  system  was  in  the  direction  of  assuring  the  ability 
of  the  ship  to  fight  in  case  of  the  disablement  of  the  con 
ning-tower.  I  had  become  much  impressed,  as  most 
naval  officers  had,  with  the  extreme  vulnerability  of  the 
conning-tower,  and  also  with  the  liability  of  the  captains 
and  others  in  the  conning-tower  to  be  disabled  by  smoke 
and  by  fragments  of  all  kinds  coming  through  the  slits  in 
the  conning-tower ;  but  I  went  further  than  anybody  else 
in  proposing  a  remedy. 

My  remedy  was  to  abolish  the  slits  altogether,  and  to 
have  the  people  in  the  conning-tower  use  periscopes,  pro 
jecting  upward  through  the  top  of  the  tower.  I  even 
went  to  the  extreme  of  advocating  there  be  no  mechanism 
whatever  inside  the  conning-tower;  because  it  could  be 
easily  disabled,  and  because,  if  it  were  disabled,  the  ship 
would  be  helpless.  I  advocated  steering  the  ship  and 
giving  orders  to  the  engine-rooms  from  stations  below 

443 


444     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIRAL 

deck;  one  station  being  in  the  communication-room  di 
rectly  below  the  conning-tower,  and  the  other  station 
being  at  the  extreme  after-en'd  of  the  ship,  in  the  steering 
engine-room. 

I  had  had  this  idea  in  my  mind  for  years,  and  had  made 
several  experiments  which  had  satisfied  me  of  its  practi 
cability.  One  day  when  I  was  captain  of  the  Minneapolis 
I  had  handled  the  ship  for  more  than  an  hour  going  down 
Chesapeake  Bay  at  high  speed  by  simply  telephoning  to 
the  steering  engine-room,  and  telling  the  quartermaster 
how  to  move  his  steering-wheel.  On  another  occasion, 
while  in  Magdalena  Bay,  I  had  got  the  Tennessee  under 
way,  and  had  steamed  out  from  her  place  in  the  column 
into  the  bay  and  manoeuvered  for  over  an  hour  there,  by 
the  same  means.  One  difficulty  I  encountered  was  the 
fact  that  the  quartermaster  in  the  steering  engine-room 
had  no  good  means  of  telling  how  to  steer  a  straight 
course,  for  the  reason  that  the  compass  was  very  sluggish. 
The  reason  for  its  being  sluggish  was  that  it  was  entirely 
inclosed  by  the  steel  structure  of  the  ship,  which,  though 
it  was  thin  at  that  part  of  the  ship,  acted,  nevertheless, 
like  a  magnetic  shield,  and  prevented  some  of  the  mag 
netic  lines  of  force  from  reaching  the  compass.  While  at 
Bremerton,  however,  I  succeeded  in  finding  a  place  in  the 
steering  engine-room,  where  the  magnetic  field  was 
pretty  strong,  and  where  the  compass  would  work  fairly 
well.  The  place  was  not  close  enough  to  permit  a  good 
view  of  it  from  the  steersman's  place  at  the  steering- 
wheel,  but  I  was  able  to  overcome  this  trouble  by  a  simple 
combination  of  a  mirror  and  a  lens. 

The  invention  and  development  of  the  gyroscopic  com 
pass,  for  which  Mr.  Elmer  Sperry  has  done  more  than 
anybody  else,  has  overcome  this  difficulty  altogether,  be 
cause  a  gyroscopic  compass  does  not  depend  on  mag 
netism  at  all,  and  is  directed  at  the  true  north  instead  of 
at  the  magnetic  north.  For  these  reasons,  and  because  of 
the  development  of  the  periscope,  all  the  schemes  which  I 
was  trying  in  the  Minneapolis  and  Tennessee  are  very 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  445 

much  better  carried  out  now.  At  the  present  time  my 
methods,  as  then  carried  out,  seem  rather  crude ;  but  this 
is  the  fate  of  all  pioneer  work.  Robert  Fulton  and  James 
Watt  were  poor  engineers,  judged  by  modern  standards. 

Human  progress  is  a  groping  thing,  and  advances  in  a 
jerky  way,  mostly  by  the  efforts  of  only  a  few  men. 
These  men  take  the  first  steps,  and  if  the  first  steps  lead 
toward  success,  then  many  men  follow  them.  "C'est  le 
premier  pas  qui  coute"  (''It  is  the  first  step  that  costs")* 
and  the  man  whom  it  costs  is  the  man  who  makes  the  step. 
The  man  who  makes  that  first  step  is  apt  to  lose  his  foot 
ing  and  hurt  himself;  the  men  who  follow,  see  that  the 
first  step  is  practicable,  and  they  see  also  where  it  should 
have  been  directed  a  little  more  to  the  left  or  the  right  or 
not  quite  so  far  or  a  little  farther.  It  is  these  men  who 
"profit"  by  the  first  steps,  and  not  the  men  who  make 
them.  It  is  the  Henry  Fords  and  not  the  Robert  Fultons 
who  "succeed." 

One  of  the  first  things  the  officers  had  to  do  after  reach 
ing  Bremerton  was  to  take  the  fifty-mile  walk  which 
President  Roosevelt  had  ordered.  This  was  looked  for 
ward  to  with  considerable  concern  by  the  older  officers,  be 
cause  we  realized  that  it  might  develop  unrecognized 
weak  points  in  our  bodies,  as  it  had  done  in  those  of  some 
army  officers.  The  walk  was  to  be  preceded  in  each  case 
by  a  careful  physical  examination.  It  was  to  be  com 
pleted  in  three  days,  followed  by  another  careful  physical 
examination,  to  see  if  any  injury  had  resulted. 

In  preparation  for  the  walk,  I  bought  a  pair  of  shoes  in 
San  Francisco  which  had  been  designed  for  long  walks 
and  were  called  "Kozy  Klogs."  I  walked  in  them  a 
little,  so  as  to  accustom  my  feet  to  them,  and  them  to  my 
feet ;  but  on  the  first  day  of  my  walk  I  forgot  to  put  them 
on,  and  walked  in  my  ordinary  shoes.  My  walk  that  day 
was  in  a  bracing  air,  and  amid  scenery  of  river  and  lake 
and  mountain  and  hill  and  pine  forest  of  such  inspiring 
grandeur  that  walking  was  a  pleasure.  My  walk  was 
for  ten  miles  in  one  direction,  and  ten  miles  back,  making 


446     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

twenty  miles.  I  returned  on  board  quite  tired,  but  far 
from  exhausted,  and  I  was  able  to  take  up  the  paper  work 
of  my  office  after  I  had  had  a  bath. 

The  next  day  I  put  on  my  Kozy  Klogs  and  started  on 
my  walk,  but  decided  to  go  in  another  direction.  I  walked 
for  five  miles  amid  some  scenery  that  was  even  more  beau- 
'  tif ul  than  that  of  the  day  before,  but  over  a  road  that  was 
hillier,  and  as  the  day  was  warmer,  and  as  the  road  was 
dusty,  I  was  tired  at  the  end  of  the  first  ten  miles,  and 
wanted  to  re-turn  to  the  ship.  My  feet  felt  as  big  as  lob^ 
sters  and  as  red.  My  Kozy  Klogs  had  turned  out  to  be 
instruments  of  torture.  I  retraced  my  five-mile  walk, 
however,  and  got  to  the  end  of  it  without  much  distress, 
but  my  way  back  was  through  purgatory.  I  have  never 
been  so  tired  in  my  life  as  I  was  walking  up  a  steep,  dusty 
hill  on  my  last  two  miles.  I  finally  arrived  on  board  ship, 
and  when  I  sat  down  on  my  bunk  to  take  my  shoes  off,  I 
was  so  tired  I  could  not  get  up  again.  The  principal 
trouble  was  with  my  feet.  The  surgeon  repaired  them 
that  night,  however,  and  I  walked  the  remaining  ten  miles 
without  difficulty  the  next  morning. 

One  of  the  pleasant  incidents  of  our  stay  at  Bremerton 
was  the  exposition  given  at  Seattle,  near  by.  While  this 
exposition  was  not  so  large  as  some  other  expositions  had 
been,  it  was  conducted  with  more  foresight  and  adminis 
trative  ability  perhaps  than  any  previously  held.  Naval 
officers  have  experiences  all  their  lives  in  matters  of  ad 
ministration  and  arrangement,  and  we  were  all  enthusi 
astic  about  the  way  in  which  this  exposition  was  carried 
on.  The  incident  that  stands  out  most  clearly  in  my  mind 
in  connection  with  it  is  a  ride  that  I  took  out  to  the 
grounds  from  the  water-front.  I  was  in  a  handsome  open 
automobile,  and  I  sat  on  the  back  seat  alone,  dressed  in 
my  gorgeous  uniform,  terminating  at  the  top  in  a  black- 
and-gold  chapeau,  and  including  epaulets,  medals,  etc. 
The  day  was  fine,  and  as  I  drove  rapidly  along,  I  realized 
from  the  glances  of  the  people  on  the  streets  that  I  must 
be  making  a  rather  spectacular  appearance.  It  occurred 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  447 

to  me  that  an  observer  would  naturally  suppose  that  I  was 
feeling  as  fine  as  I  looked;  but  as  a  fact,  I  had  such  a 
stomachache  that  I  could  have  cried. 

On  New  York  day  at  the  exposition  there  was  a  large 
dinner  given,  at  which  were  present  two  possible  Presi 
dential  candidates,  Governor  Hughes  of  New  York  and 
Governor  Johnson  of  Minnesota.  It  was  known  that 
Governor  Johnson  was  to  go  home  from  Seattle  and  un 
dergo  a  surgical  operation.  He  did  so,  and  died  as  the 
result  of  the  operation. 

The  good  people  of  Seattle  and  the  good  people  of  the 
navy-yard  at  Bremerton  were  very  kind  indeed  to  us,  and 
my  wife  and  daughter  and  I  were  the  recipients  of  a  great 
deal  of  kindly  hospitality,  which  we  shall  never  forget. 
Our  stay  there  was  one  of  the  bright  spots  in  our  memo 
ries.  But  the  earth  continued  to  turn  on  its  axis,  bring 
ing  its  alternation  of  light  and  darkness  and  its  succession 
of  working  days,  so  that  the  work  which  was  to  be  done  on 
the  Tennessee  and  other  ships  was  finally  finished.  At 
last,  one  evening  at  seven  o'clock,  the  division  got  under 
way  and  stood  north  through  Puget  Sound,  and  afterward 
to  the  westward  through  the  magnificent  strait  of  San 
Juan  de  Fuca.  The  Tennessee  led  the  procession,  and  I 
stood  on  the  bridge  all  night,  piloting  her,  and  verifying 
her  position  continually  by  the  use  of  the  range-finder. 
Before  daybreak  we  had  passed  Cape  Flattery,  and  were 
standing  out  into  the  Pacific,  bound  for  San  Francisco. 
Two  days  later  the  Tennessee  led  the  column  into  San 
Francisco  Bay  and  anchored  there  about  midnight  in  a 
heavy  mist  that  was  almost  a  fog. 

My  wife  and  daughter  joined  me  in  San  Francisco,  and 
we  decided  there  that  they  should  go  out  to  Honolulu, 
and  return  from  there  to  San  Francisco.  Sebree  had 
now  become  commander  in  chief  of  the  fleet,  and  had  re 
ceived  orders  from  the  department  to  go  to  Honolulu, 
thence  to  the  Admiralty  Islands,  near  New  Guinea,  and 
thence  to  Manila. 

So  when  the  fleet  started  for  Honolulu,  my  little  family 


448     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

followed  in  a  passenger  steamer.  The  fleet  made  the  trip 
at  the  highest  speed  they  could,  which  averaged  nearly 
eighteen  knots.  This  was  the  record  up  to  that  time,  for 
so  long  a  journey,  made  by  so  many  ships. 

We  had  a  pleasant  stay  in  Honolulu,  of  course ;  all  stays 
in  Honolulu  are  pleasant.  During  our  stay  there  my  wife 
and  I  decided  that  she  and  our  daughter  would  go  out  to 
Shanghai  again,  and  revisit  old  scenes  and  acquaintances, 
because  we  now  knew  that  the  fleet  was  to  go  there  from 
Manila. 

The  trip  of  the  fleet  to  the  Admiralty  Islands  was  pleas 
ant  in  the  first  part,  but  so  hot  in  the  second  part  as  to  be 
decidedly  unpleasant.  We  did  not  like  the  Admiralty  Is 
lands  at  all.  We  had  thought  that  Manila  was  extremely 
hot,  but  Manila  was  cool  compared  with  them.  We  were 
there  only  a  few  days,  and  I  did  not  go  ashore,  feeling  hot 
enough  on  board  ship.  The  officers  who  did  go  ashore  de 
scribed  the  customs  and  costumes  of  the  natives  as  evi 
dencing  almost  the  lowest  state  of  civilization  a  human 
being  could  live  in. 

We  headed  for  the  comparatively  cool  precincts  of 
Manila  with  great  joy  though  we  knew  that  in  Manila  Bay 
and  outside  we  should  have  to  work  much  harder  than 
people  like  to  work  in  tropical  climates,  in  order  to  get 
ready  for  day  target-practice  and  night  target-practice, 
and  afterward  to  carry  out  those  practices.  Nobody  who 
has  not  been  on  board  a  modern  man-of-war  knows  how 
strenuous  this  kind  of  work  is,  and  what  a  period  of  anx 
iety  it  is,  especially  for  the  captains  and  gunnery  officers 
of  the  ships.  Target-practice  shows  better  than  any 
other  one  thing  the  condition  of  efficiency  of  each  ship. 
For  this  reason  an  officer's  professional  reputation  de 
pends  so  much  on  the  way  he  goes  through  target-prac 
tice,  especially  if  he  is  a  captain  or  gunnery  officer,  that 
the  period  of  target-practice  is  like  a  gentle  nightmare. 

We  were  in  Manila  at  this  work  about  a  month.  The 
Tennessee  did  better  than  any  other  ship  in  the  fleet,  and 
there  was  a  long  period  before  the  results  of  the  target 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  449 

practice  had  been  fully  worked  out  in  the  Navy  Depart 
ment  when  the  Tennessee  was  supposed  to  have  done  bet 
ter  than  any  other  ship  in  the  navy.  After  the  results 
had  been  thoroughly  worked  out,  however,  it  was  an 
nounced  that  the  best  ship  was  the  Vermont,  which  re 
ceived  a  mark  of  48  %o ;  that  the  Tennessee  was  the  second 
ship,  with  a  mark  of  44%0 ;  and  that  the  Maryland  was  the 
third  ship,  with  a  mark  of  41%o.  The  captains,  executive 
officers,  navigators  and  gunnery  officers  of  the  Vermont, 
Tennessee,  and  Mart/land  received  commendatory  letters 
from  the  department  because  of  the  efficiency  of  their 
ships. 

This  was  the  fourth  commendatory  letter  that  I  had  re 
ceived  from  the  department  during  my  cruise.  The  first 
was  for  my  method  of  " navigating  without  horizon,"  the 
second  was  for  my  method  of  correcting  range-finders,  the 
third  was  for  putting  out  the  fire  in  Coquimbo,  and  the 
fourth  was  for  the  efficiency  of  my  ship  at  target-practice. 
In  that  target-practice  there  were  twenty-seven  battle 
ships  and  armored  cruisers  competing. 

After  target-practice,  we  headed  with  joy  toward 
Shanghai.  We  arrived  at  Shanghai,  or,  rather,  at  Wu- 
sung,  three  days  before  Christmas.  Wusung  is  on  the 
Yang-tse-Kiang,  just  where  the  Wusung  River  enters  it, 
and  about  fifteen  miles  below  Shanghai.  Wusung  is  a 
most  uncomfortable  anchorage.  The  tide  runs  at  great 
velocity  in  one  direction  or  the  other,  and  the  bottom  is  so 
soft  that  the  anchor  sinks  deep  into  the  mud.  I  anchored 
the  Tennessee  with  one  anchor,  but  the  next  morning  she 
drifted,  and  a  pilot  who  came  on  board  said  it  was  better 
to  moor  with  two  anchors,  because  a  ship  was  moved  so 
violently  by  the  current,  when  the  tide  changed,  that  she 
was  apt  to  pull  her  anchor  out  than  if  there  was  only  one. 
I  took  the  advice  of  the  local  expert  and  moored.  The 
day  before  we  were  to  leave,  Admiral  Sebree  suggested  to 
me  that  I  had  better  see  if  the  anchor-chains  were  clear, 
because  he  had  cruised  in  China  before,  and  knew  that 
ships  were  apt  to  foul  their  chains  at  Wusung.  I  was 


450     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

very  grateful  to  Admiral  Sebree  for  this  advice,  and  I 
followed  it  at  once.  It  was  fortunate  that  I  did  so,  be 
cause  the  chains  were  found  to  be  in  such  a  horrible  tangle 
that  it  took  us  from  ten  o  'clock  in  the  forenoon  until  after 
eleven  o  'clock  that  night  to  get  them  untangled. 

About  four  o'clock  on  the  day  of  our  arrival  I  went 
ashore  at  Wusung  to  take  the  train  to  Shanghai.  After  I 
had  climbed  up  on  the  dock,  after  a  rough-and-tumble  trip 
in  a  steam  launch,  I  found  that  I  had  barely  time  to  catch 
the  train  to  Shanghai.  Some  Chinese  coolies  were  there, 
each  with  a  wheel-barrow  in  which  two  passengers  could 
sit,  one  on  each  side,  and  they  suggested  to  me  in  Pigeon- 
English  that  I  should  be  trundled  up  to  the  train  in  a 
wheelbarrow,  because,  "No  gotee  time  to  walkee."  As 
their  reasoning  seemed  to  be  good,  though  ungrammati 
cally  expressed,  I  got  up  on  one  side  of  a  wheelbarrow, 
with  considerable  anxiety.  I  expected  to  be  pushed  along 
over  some  rather  uneven  ground  that  I  saw,  but  that  was 
not  the  expectation  of  the  coolie.  If  I  had  known  what 
his  expectation  was,  I  do  not  think  I  should  have  allowed 
him  to  fulfil  it;  but  after  we  got  started,  it  was  too  late 
to  stop,  and  we  could  not  turn  around.  He  started  at 
full  speed  along  a  very  narrow  sea-wall  that  skirted  the 
shore,  and  of  which  the  side  ran  down  vertically  to  the 
rocks  about  twenty  feet  below,  on  which  the  surf  was 
breaking.  My  feet  dangled  over  the  precipice;  and  I 
fully  expected  each  moment  that  the  wheelbarrow  and 
the  coolie  and  I  would  descend  to  a  common  destruction ; 
but,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  we  ran  along  with  absolute 
smoothness  and  with  perfect  balance,  and  without  swerv 
ing  either  to  the  right  or  to  the  left. 

The  railway  to  Shanghai  ran  along  a  narrow  stream, 
muddy,  sluggish,  and  shallow.  On  both  banks  of  this 
stream  were  many  Chinese  houses,  and  on  this  stream 
were  many  Chinese  boats.  In  these  boats  and  houses 
were  many  thousands  of  Chinese  men,  women,  and  chil 
dren.  There  were  no  signs  of  any  attempts  at  sanita- 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  451 

tion  of  any  sort,  and  it  was  evident  that  all  the  water 
which  was  drunk  came  from  that  nasty  stream.  Yet  the 
men,  women,  and  children  looked  as  healthy  as  most 
people,  and  the  babies  were  noticeably  fat. 

I  rode  in  a  jin-rikisha  to  the  Palace  Hotel,  where  my 
wife  and  daughter  were.  I  found  my  wife  laid  up  in 
bed  with  a  heavy  cold  and  under  a  doctor's  care.  I  had 
a  conversation  with  the  doctor  the  next  morning,  and 
he  told  me  that  she  was  very  ill,  and  could  not  possibly 
get  well  for  a  week  or  more.  This  was  disquieting  in 
formation,  because  she  had  her  passage  engaged  for 
Yokohama  in  a  steamer  which  was  to  leave  in  a  few 
days.  Besides  that,  the  fleet  was  to  leave  in  a  few  days 
for  Yokohama,  and  then  go  to  San  Francisco.  That 
night  she  was  so  ill  that  I  made  up  my  mind  that  I  should 
have  to  stay  with  -her  in  Shanghai  even  if  I  had  to  give 
up  the  command  of  my  ship.  She  remained  ill  for  sev 
eral  days,  though  gradually  getting  better.  Finally,  the 
day  before  the  steamer  was  to  leave,  she  suddenly  became 
perfectly  well. 

In  Shanghai  one  can  get  more  for  a  dollar,  or  could 
then,  than  in  any  other  place  in  the  world.  My  wife  and 
daughter  had  adjoining  rooms,  each  of  which  was  large 
and  comfortable,  with  its  private  bath,  for  five  yen  per 
day  each,  which  included  meals  and  a  service*  that 
I  have  never  seen  surpassed  and  seldom  equaled.  The 
aggregate  cost  of  the  entire  hotel  living  for  both  was 
somewhat  less  than  five  dollars  in  American  money  per 
day,  and  all  other  prices  were  on  a  similar  scale.  A 
bottle  of  excellent  port  cost  only  two  yen,  somewhat 
less  than  a  dollar.  Other  wines  were  similarly  cheap, 
and  so  were  all  imported  articles,  because  Shanghai  was 
a  free  port.  Articles  of  silverware,  silks,  and  things  of 
Chinese  workmanship  in  general  being  likewise  inexpen 
sive,  we  were  able  to  exchange  some  pretty  and  yet  use 
ful  gifts  at  Christmas. 

From  Shanghai  we  went  to  Yokohama,  which,  though 


452     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

considerably  farther  north,  was  considerably  warmer, 
because  the  Japan  stream  from  the  south  passed  near 
Yokohama  and  warmed  it. 

The  Tennessee  had  an  exhilarating  trip  through  the 
beautiful  Inland  Sea  of  Japan,  through  which  I  had  gone 
thirteen  years  before  in  the  other  direction,  when  navi 
gator  of  the  Petrel.  As  we  stopped  at  the  entrance  of 
the  Strait  of  Shimonoseki,  I  noticed  a  Japanese  boat 
man  standing  in  his  little  boat.  The  weather  was  very 
cold,  and  we  on  board  the  Tennessee  wore  all  the  clothes 
that  we  could  pile  on;  but  this  boatman  was  standing 
at  ease,  and  apparently  in  comfort,  without  any  cloth 
ing  whatever  except  a  little  shirt,  and  a  pair  of  trousers 
that  came  just  below  his  knees. 

Naval  officers  have  to  study  weather  conditions  a  great 
deal  not  only  in  regard  to  the  action  of  the  weather  on 
the  sea  itself,  but  also  its  effect  on  human  beings.  As 
a  result,  most  of  us  have  come  to  think  that  the  ill  ef 
fect  of  cold  is  not  nearly  so  great  as  people  suppose. 
The  only  man  who  died  on  board  the  Tennessee  during 
the  entire  two  years  that  I  commanded  her  died  of 
pneumonia.  He  died  in  the  tropics  so  long  a  time  after 
we  had  left  the  cold  weather  that  the  doctors  knew  that 
his  illness  had  been  contracted  in  the  tropics.  When  we 
went  from  Manila  to  Shanghai,  we  made  a  sudden  change 
from  hot  weather  to  a  temperature  of  thirty-two  degrees, 
Fahrenheit,  when  we  arrived.  I  was  much  concerned 
lest  the  sudden  change  should  cause  a  great  deal  of  ill 
ness.  It  caused  hardly  any  that  was  worth  considering. 

During  our  stay  in  Yokohama  my  family  lived  at 
the  Grand  Hotel,  which  was  much  more  expensive  than 
it  had  been  on  our  previous  trip  thirteen  years  before, 
but  no  better.  We  were  entertained  pleasantly  in  Tokio 
at  both  official  and  unofficial  dinners  and  receptions.  A 
delightful  luncheon  was  given  by  Baron  Takahashi  to 
Admiral  Sebree  and  the  captains,  at  which  my  wife  and 
some  other  ladies  were  present.  It  was  a  Japanese 
luncheon,  with  modifications,  and  it  would  have  been  even 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  453 

more  pleasant  than  it  was  if  we  had  not  had  to  sit  cross- 
legged  on  the  floor.  The  official  dinners  had  one  peculiar 
ity  that  I  had  never  seen  before,  that  all  the  guests  were 
supposed  to  leave  at  ten  o'clock. 

The  American  ambassador,  Mr.  Bryan,  arranged  an 
audience  for  Admiral  Sebree  and  the  captains  with  the 
Mikado.  We  went  up  from  Yokohama  to  Tokio  by  train, 
then  drove  to  a  hotel  in  Tokio  where  we  put  our  special 
full-dress  uniforms  on,  and  thence  to  the  mikado's 
palace.  We  drove  into  an  inclosure  and  up  to  an  un 
pretentious  building.  On  entering,  we  were  met  by  offi 
cials  in  non-military  uniform  and  escorted  to  a  waiting- 
room.  This  waiting-room  was  plainly  furnished,  but 
with  the  exquisite  taste  and  cleanliness  of  the  Japanese. 
The  place  was  noticeably  quiet;  not  a  sound  could  be 
heard.  Finally,  we  ranged  in  line,  one  behind  the  other, 
and  marched  into  the  adjoining  room.  There  we  saw 
standing  a  man  in  uniform,  with  his  left  hand  resting 
on  his  sword.  We  went  up  to  this  man  in  the  order  of 
our  rank,  and  were  successively  presented.  The  mikado 
shook  hands  with  each  of  us,  and  said  he  was  glad  to 
see  us.  His  manner  was  unassuming  and  almost 
deprecatory.  To  me  he  did  not  look  like  a  well  man. 

After  having  been  presented,  each  officer  backed  out 
of  the  room  by  a  door  different  from  the  one  by  which 
he  had  entered  it,  and  thence  returned  to  the  waiting- 
room.  Before  going  into  the  emperor *s  presence,  the 
only  direction  given  to  each  officer  was  not  to  turn  his 
back  on  the  emperor. 

During  the  time  we  were  in  the  inclosure  that  held  the 
palace  I  did  not  see  a  military  uniform  except  that  of 
the  emperor. 

A  few  days  before  we  left  Yokohama,  a  Japanese 
photographer  sent  an  advertisement  on  board.  Think 
ing  it  might  be  interesting  to  own  a  Japanese  photograph 
of  myself,  I  sat  for  one.  In  a  few  days  I  received  some 
proofs,  and  I  thought  they  looked  a  little  hard.  When 
I  took  them  to  him  and  made  some  such  remark,  the 


454     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

photographer  said  in  very  precise  English:  "This  is 
truth  without  mercy;  I  will  put  some  mercy  now  in  your 
picture."  I  asked  him  to  put  some  mercy  in,  and  he 
did  so.  Some  one  in  his  office,  I  suppose  a  clerk,  wrote 
on  the  picture,  "Captan  Tennessy." 

We  arrived  in  Honolulu  about  the  first  of  February. 
My  little  family  went  again  to  the  Moana  Hotel  at 
Waikiki,  where  the  surf  breaks  on  the  beach,  from  which 
beautiful  views  can  always  be  had  of  mountain  and  sea, 
and  where  it  seems  easier  and  pleasanter  to  live  than  in 
any  other  place  in  the  world. 

One  of  the  incidents  of  our  stay  was  the  most  beauti 
ful  ball  I  have  ever  seen.  It  was  given  by  the  officers 
of  the  fleet  in  partial  return  for  the  hospitalities  which 
they  had  received,  and  was  held  on  board  three  ships, 
the  Tennessee,  the  Washington,  and  the  California.  The 
Tennessee  was  secured  at  one  side  of  a  long,  wide  dock, 
and  the  California  was  secured  alongside  the  Tennessee 
on  the  side  away  from  the  dock,  and  the  Washington 
was  secured  to  the  other  side  of  the  dock.  The  dock  it 
self  was  decorated  with  flags  and  with  beautiful  plants 
and  flowers,  which  were  loaned  by  citizens  of  Honolulu, 
and  on  the  dock  a  structure  was  built  representing  the 
quarter-deck  of  a  ship,  on  the  stern  of  which  was  painted 
in  large  letters  the  name,  U.  S.  S.  Honolulu.  The 
Honolulu,  the  Washington,  the  Tennessee,  and  the  Cali 
fornia  had  each  its  band  and  supper  and  dancing-floor; 
so  that,  although  thousands  of  people  attended,  there 
was  plenty  of  room  and  plenty  of  entertainment  for 
every  one.  The  night  was  warm,  but  not  hot;  a  gentle 
trade-wind  blew,  and  the  full  moon  gave  the  last  touch 
of  perfection  to  an  occasion  unimaginable  anywhere  ex 
cept  in  Honolulu. 

The  fleet  left  Honolulu  on  February  12,  1910,  and 
headed  toward  the  United  States.  As  we  sped  to  the 
eastward  after  clearing  the  harbor,  I  watched  the  grad 
ually  receding  palms  and  houses  of  the  town,  and  Dia- 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CEUISE  455 

mond  Head  growing  smaller  in  the  distance.  I  remem 
bered  the  first  morning  I  had  seen  Diamond  Head  in 
February,  1875,  just  thirty-five  years  before.  I  called 
to  mind  the  many  experiences  I  had  had  there  since  then, 
all  of  them  delightful;  and  I  realized  with  the  helpless 
feeling  of  advancing  years  that  it  was  hardly  possible 
that  I  should  ever  behold  again  those  beautiful  and 
familiar  scenes,  now  fading  from  my  view. 

Before  leaving  Yokohama,  we  had  received  word  that 
the  Tennessee  and  Washington  were  to  leave  the  Pacific 
and  go  to  the  Atlantic,  to  form  part  of  a  special  service 
squadron  under  Bear-Admiral  Staunton;  and  that  the 
Tennessee  and  Washington  would  proceed  to  Bremerton 
from  Honolulu,  while  the  other  ships  would  go  to  San 
Francisco. 

Therefore,  before  leaving  Honolulu,  Admiral  Sebree 
gave  me  written  orders  to  proceed  with  the  fleet  from 
Honolulu;  but  to  be  prepared  after  clearing  the  harbor 
to  receive  a  signal  from  him  to  take  command  of  both 
the  Tennessee  and  Washington  and  proceed  with  them 
to  Bremerton. 

This  signal  was  given  about  an  hour  after  leaving 
the  harbor.  I  immediately  changed  the  course  of  the 
Tennessee  to  the  northward,  and  signaled  to  the  Wash 
ington  to  follow.  We  were  within  sight  of  the  rest  of 
the  fleet  the  remainder  of  the  afternoon,  but  on  the 
following  morning  I  could  say  to  myself, 

I  am  monarch  of  all  I  survey, 

My  right  there  is  none  to  dispute. 

Everything  promised  a  pleasant  trip  for  the  first  few 
days  and  a  rough  one  for  the  last  few  days;  but  one 
afternoon,  two  days  after  leaving  Honolulu,  I  received 
a  signal  from  Captain  C.  C.  Eogers,  who  then  com 
manded  the  Washington,  that  some  sickness  had  broken 
out,  which  the  doctors  diagnosed  as  smallpox.  The  next 
day  the  diagnosis  was  confirmed.  On  arriving  in  the 


456     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAB-ADMIRAL 

neighborhood  of  Port  Townsend,  where  there  was  a  hos 
pital  belonging  to  the  United  States  Marine  Hospital 
Service,  I  sent  the  Washington  there. 

The  Tennessee  went  to  the  navy-yard  at  Bremerton, 
and  I  remember  making  that  last  turn  before  reaching 
the  navy-yard  just  after  dusk.  We  anchored  near  the 
dock,  and  the  commandant  directed  me  to  go  alongside 
the  dock  at  seven  o'clock  the  next  morning.  When  I 
started,  I  remember  that  I  had  a  faint  consciousness 
of  not  being  very  alert.  By  that  time  I  had  handled 
the  Tennessee  in  so  many  difficult  situations,  and  had 
been  so  fortunate  in  meeting  those  situations  with  suc 
cess,  that  on  this  occasion,  which  was  the  last  one  in 
which  I  ever  put  a  big  ship  alongside  a  dock,  I  was  over 
confident.  The  result  was  that  I  did  the  worst  piece  of 
ship-handling  I  ever  had  done,  and  brought  the  ship 
alongside  the  dock  with  a  shock.  Before  hitting  the 
dock,  I  realized  what  a  bad  landing  I  was  going  to  make, 
but  I  did  not  realize  it  until  too  late.  I  had  not  made  my 
plan  with  sufficient  care  before  starting.  I  saw  that  I 
had  not  used  foresight,  the  value  of  which  Harry  Taylor 
had  impressed  on  me  many  years  before.  My  bad  land 
ing  that  morning  was  a  shock  to  me  in  more  senses  than 
one,  and  I  was  glad  afterward  that  it  had  happened,  be 
cause  it  reminded  me  very  forcibly  of  the  necessity  of 
making  proper  plans  before  taking  action. 

Shortly  after  reaching  the  navy-yard  I  was  delighted 
and  amazed  to  read  in  the  Seattle  Post  Intelligence  that 
Secretary  Meyer  had  appointed  four  aids  to  coordinate 
the  work  of  the  bureaus  of  the  Navy  Department  and  to 
assist  him  in  giving  the  activities  of  the  Navy  Depart 
ment  a  definite  direction. 

For  many  years  projects  of  this  kind  had  been  sug 
gested  from  time  to  time,  and  boards  had  been  appointed 
to  make  recommendations  as  to  what  had  best  be  done. 
These  efforts  could  all  be  traced  to  Admiral  Luce,  and 
they  had  the  support  of  the  navy  as  a  whole;  but  they 
had  never  come  to  any  result.  The  Navy  Department, 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CEUISE  457 

as  organized  by  law,  was  administered  by  a  secretary  of 
the  navy,  and  divided  into  eight  bureaus.  Each  one  of 
those  bureaus  was  independent  of  every  other,  and  each 
chief  of  bureau  was  independent  of  any  authority  what 
ever  except  that  of  the  secretary.  As  the  secretary  was 
a  civilian,  and  untrained  in  such  things  as  ordnance  or 
steam  engineering,  the  chiefs  of  the  bureaus  conducted 
their  departments  on  lines  which  they  themselves  de 
veloped,  and  which  had  little  reference  to  the  lines  in 
which  the  other  bureaus  were  working.  Secretary  Whit 
ney  had  remedied  the  evil  in  one  particular,  by  making 
the  supplies  for  the  navy  belong  to  the  navy  as  a  whole, 
and  not  to  the  various  bureaus.  This  prevented  duplica 
tion  of  supplies,  but  it  did  not  produce  coordination  of 
effort,  or  the  di*- acting  of  the  Navy  Department  as  a 
whole  toward  any  definite  end.  Still  less  did  it  plan 
or  even  consider  any  definite  end  toward  which  the  activi 
ties  of  the  department  should  be  directed. 

The  result  was  that  there  was  no  coordination  except 
of  the  most  general  kind,  and  no  selection  of  any  object 
toward  which  the  activities  of  the  navy  should  be  di 
rected.  Secretary  Moody  and  Secretary  Newberry  had 
appointed  boards,  one  composed  of  civilians  and  officers, 
and  one  of  naval  officers  only,  and  these  boards  had  made 
very  definite  and  excellent  recommendations.  Most  sec 
retaries  had  taken  that  amount  of  interest  in  the  navy 
which  any  man  takes  in  any  undertaking  which  is  en 
tirely  different  from  anything  else  he  has  worked  at  all 
his  life,  and  had  been  induced  to  appoint  such  boards  only 
by  the  insistence  of  naval  officers.  An  exception  must  be 
made  as  to  Secretary  Newberry,  who  had  enlisted  for 
service  in  the  Spanish  War,  and  who  was  genuinely  in 
terested  in  the  navy.  But  all  the  secretaries  except 
Newberry  had  been  fearful  of  losing  their  "power," 
and  the  bureau  chiefs  had  opposed  such  effective  opposi 
tion  that  no  real  steps  had  been  taken. 

Here  at  last  was  a  secretary  of  the  navy  actually  tak 
ing  a  definite  step  which  would  reduce  his  "power"  in  the 


458     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

sense  that  it  would  take  certain  details  away  from  him, 
and  doing  something  which  had  no  other  object  than  the 
efficiency  of  the  navy!  It  was  an  incredible  thing;  but 
it  had  happened. 

Secretary  Meyer  had  established  a  system  by  which 
he  was  assisted  in  performing  his  duties  by  four  aides, 
one  for  operations,  one  for  personnel,  one  for  material, 
and  one  for  inspections.  Congressional  authority  was 
not  asked  for,  but  it  was  not  necessary  so  long  as  Mr. 
Meyer  should  remain  secretary  of  the  navy.  The  hope 
was  that,  before  he  should  cease  to  be  secretary,  con 
gressional  authorization  would  be  obtained,  or  that  the 
system  would  be  found  to  be  so  good  that  the  succeed 
ing  secretary  would  not  dare  to  abolish  it. 

One  good  feature  about  not  having  congressional  action 
was  that  political  influence  would  not  probably  be  em 
ployed  to  have  any  officer  appointed  to  jne  of  those  posi 
tions.  The  appointments  of  chiefs  of  bureau  had  too 
often  been  influenced  by  political  considerations,  one 
reason  being  that  each  appointment  had  to  be  confirmed 
by  the  Senate.  The  excellence  of  the  appointments  made 
by  Secretary  Meyer  proved  that  no  political  considera 
tions  influenced  him  in  his  choice  of  aids.  The  first  aid 
for  operations  was  Rear- Admiral  Wainwright;  the  first 
aid  for  personnel  was  Rear-Admiral  Potter;  the  first 
aid  for  material  was  Rear- Admiral  Swift;  and  the  first 
aid  for  inspections  was  Read-Admiral  Ward.  These 
were  all  men  of  experience,  ability,  and  character. 

My  wife  and  daughter  had  gone  to  San  Francisco 
with  the  intention  of  visiting  the  southern  part  of  Cali 
fornia,  and  returning  to  San  Francisco.  I  had  expected 
to  be  detached,  because  I  had  been  a  year  and  a  half  in 
the  ship,  which  at  that  time  was  the  average  length  of 
a  captain's  command,  and  I  had  made  general  plans  to 
join  my  family  in  San  Francisco  and  go  east  with  them. 
But  shortly  after  reaching  the  navy-yard  I  received  or 
ders  to  take  command  of  the  South  Dakota  and  Ten 
nessee,  and  proceed  with  them,  by  way  of  Panama  and 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  459 

the  Strait  of  Magellan,  to  Maldonado,  in  Uruguay,  and 
report  there  to  Admiral  Staunton.  The  South  Dakota 
had  been  substituted  for  the  Washington,  which  had  not 
been  able  yet  to  get  rid  of  the  smallpox  germ. 

So  my  wife  and  daughter,  instead  of  going  south, 
came  north  to  Bremerton  again,  and  spent  two  days  on 
the  train  in  a  washout,  with  very  little  to  eat  and  drink. 
On  the  tenth  of  March  they  started  east  overland,  and 
I  started  south  overseas.  When  I  backed  the  Tennessee 
out  from  the  dock,  she  was  the  most  unman-of-war-like- 
looking  ship  I  had  ever  seen.  As  we  did  not  expect  to 
be  able  to  get  any  vegetables  until  we  reached  Maldonado, 
the  upper  deck  was  almost  covered  with  potatoes  and 
onions,  and  these  were  entirely  covered  with  coal-dust; 
because  I  started  the  ship  away  from  the  dock  as  soon 
as  the  last  bag  of  coal  had  come  on  board. 

We  had  a  beautiful  trip  through  Puget  Sound,  and 
out  through  the  Strait  of  San  Juan  de  Fuca.  The  men 
squirted  water  over  everything,  and  scrubbed  every 
thing  to  their  hearts'  content,  and  so  everything  was 
virtually  clean  by  sunset.  I  had  ordered  the  South 
Dakota,  which  was  at  San  Francisco,  to  report  to  me  off 
the  Farallones  Islands  at  noon  on  a  certain  day.  At 
that  time  she  did  so,  and  then  took  up  her  station  on 
the  starboard  beam  of  the  Tennessee,  two  thousand  yards 
distant.  In  an  hour  she  had  corrected  her  compass  and 
her  speed  of  engines  so  as  to  go  at  exactly  the  same  speed 
and  in  the  same  direction  as  the  Tennessee,  and  after 
that  we  were  able  to  keep  together  without  any  signaling 
whatever  all  the  way  to  Maldonado. 

During  all  the  time  I  had  been  in  command  of  the 
Tennessee,  until  I  left  Honolulu  with  the  Washington, 
my  time  had  been  so  fully  engrossed  day  and  night,  in 
cluding  Sundays,  with  the  management  of  the  ship  and 
all  the  multitudinous  demands  upon  my  attention  in  the 
drills  and  discipline  of  nearly  a  thousand  men,  that  I 
had  not  allowed  my  thoughts  to  wander  to  other  fields.  I 
had  not  even  allowed  myself  to  think,  except  at  rare  in- 


460     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

tervals,  about  my  turret  range-finder,  which  I  had 
mounted  on  the  forward  turret  shortly  after  I  took  com 
mand.  Immediately  after  leaving  Honolulu,  however,  I 
was  able  to  relax  my  attention  and  to  think  occasionally 
on  general  subjects. 

The  first  subject  that  attracted  me  was  one  that  I  had 
suggested  somewhat  in  my  essay,  "The  Naval  Profes 
sion,"  that  of  comparing  the  effect  which  a  ship  can 
exert  with  the  effect  which  an  army  can  exert.  My  sug 
gestion  had  not  attracted  much  attention  at  the  time, 
and  though  some  people  thought  it  was  rather  striking, 
it  did  not  seem  to  have  any  practical  value.  It  occurred 
to  me  now,  however,  that  it  might  be  made  of  great  prac 
tical  value,  provided  it  was  sound.  The  more  I  thought 
of  it,  the  more  it  seemed  to  be  sounr1.,  and  capable  of  prac 
tical  application.  One  of  the  first  things  that  struck  me 
was  that,  if  it  was  sound,  it  must  be  because  the  power 
which  a  ship  or  army  exerts  is  mechanical;  and  of 
this  the  fact  that  my  own  inventions  had  increased  the 
power  of  navies  by  increasing  their  power  to  do  me 
chanical  destruction  seemed  almost  a  complete  proof. 
This  led  to  the  idea  that  the  influence  upon  history  which 
Mahan  called  "sea  power"  was  not  really  sea  power,  but 
naval  power,  and  that  its  influence  was  due  to  the  fact  that 
this  naval  power  could  deliver  blows  which  would  have  a 
mechanically  destructive  effect.  In  pondering  over  this 
idea  in  the  hours  of  leisure  which  the  long  sea-trip  gave 
me,  a  realization  flashed  into  my  mind  that  a  navy  or 
army  is  merely  a  development,  produced  by  centuries  of 
progress,  of  earlier  means  for  waging  war,  and  that,  if 
we  would  carry  back  our  history  of  means  of  warfare- 
far  enough,  we  would  come  to  the  club  with  which  Cain 
killed  Abel. 

This  idea  startled  me,  and  I  proceeded  at  once  to  en 
deavor  to  express  it  on  paper.  I  knew  it  would  be  use 
less  to  try  to  get  any  support  for  such  an  idea  unless  I 
could  get  people  to  see  it  gradually ;  but  in  the  endeavor  to 
do  this  I  wrote  for  many  days  without  any  success  what- 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  461 

ever,  and  without  perceiving  any  line  along  which  I  could 
work.  Finally,  however,  my  ideas  became  more  clearly 
arranged,  and  I  thought  I  saw  my  way  to  writing  an 
article  in  which  I  should  bring  out  my  mechanical  theory, 
by  analyzing  the  nature  of  sea  power  and  showing  that 
it  was  essentially  naval  power,  and  then  by  analyzing  the 
nature  of  naval  power  and  showing  that  it  was  essentially 
mechanical.  Work  on  this  paper  occupied  most  of  my 
leisure  moments  until  we  arrived  at  Maldonado  in  the 
middle  of  April,  and  from  that  time,  but  at  less  frequent 
intervals,  during  the  rest  of  the  year. 

Our  first  stop  was  to  be  at  Panama.  The  night  be 
fore  reaching  Panama,  which  we  expected  to  reach  about 
noon  the  following  day,  I  went  upon  the  bridge  about  ten 
o'clock,  as  was  my  custom,  to  see  if  the  officer  of  the  deck 
understood  his  night  orders,  and  if  the  dispositions  for 
the  night  had  been  properly  made. 

I  stood  on  the  port  side  of  the  bridge  and  looked  over 
the  sea  for  a  few  minutes.  Suddenly  I  saw  what  looked 
like  a  line  of  white  foam,  quite  distant,  and  extending 
from  our  port  beam  in  a  diagonal  line  to  a  point  ahead 
of  the  ship  and  across  the  bow.  I  knew  that  our  navi 
gational  calculations  fixed  our  position  about  fifty  miles 
from  shore;  but  what  was  that  long  white  line!  It 
looked  like  a  line  of  breakers.  The  night  was  calm,  and 
the  sea  was  smooth,  and  that  line  showed  with  a  dis 
tinctness  that  was  painful. 

I  went  into  the  chart-house  and  examined  the  chart 
very  carefully  near  the  point  which  represented  our 
supposed  position,  but  could  see  no  explanation.  Then 
I  went  back  to  the  bridge,  where  I  had  stood  before, 
thinking  that  perhaps  my  eyes  had  deceived  me.  But 
there  was  that  line,  looking  the  same  as  before,  only 
clearer  and  nearer;  in  fact,  it  did  not  look  like  a  line 
now ;  it  looked  more  like  surf. 

"Do  you  see  anything  peculiar  on  the  port  bowl"  I 
said  to  the  lookout. 

"Yes,  sir;  I  see  those  breakers,"  he  answered. 


462     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

He  answered  in  a  perfectly  matter-of-fact  way;  and 
yet  he  knew  that  if  the  ship  ran  into  breakers  at  the 
fourteen-knot  speed  at  which  we  were  then  going,  she 
would  become  a  total  wreck,  and  he  would  probably  be 
drowned. 

I  asked  the  officer  of  the  deck  and  the  quartermaster 
what  the  thing  looked  like  to  them,  and  they  all  said 
it  looked  like  breakers.  Again  I  went  to  the  chart- 
house,  and  again  I  could  find  no  justification  for  sup 
posing  that  what  looked  like  breakers  could  be  really 
breakers. 

Then  I  went  back  to  the  bridge  again,  and  stood  on 
the  port  side.  By  this  time  the  foaming  water  was  so 
near  that  we  could  see  it  with  absolute  distinctness,  and 
hear  it  besides.  Closer  and  closer  we  got  to  it.  The 
temptation  to  stop  or  to  head  away  from  it  was  tre 
mendous.  I  held  on  to  the  brass  railing  of  the  bridge  in 
front  of  me,  and  so  did  the  men  by  me,  and  watched  the 
ship  rush  toward  the  foaming  mass.  Finally  we  were 
so  close  to  it  that  it  was  impossible  to  avoid  it  even  if 
I  had  wished.  I  gripped  that  railing  so  tightly  that  my 
hands  ached  all  the  next  day,  as  I  saw  the  ship  plunge 
into  the  foaming  water,  and  go  through  it  unharmed. 

I  suppose  that  what  we  passed  through  was  merely 
the  tide-rip,  which  is  usually  formed  when  a  tide  goes 
into  or  comes  out  of  any  harbor  and  meets  the  other 
tide.  I  do  not  think  it  could  have  been  anything  else; 
but  I  had  never  seen  a  tide-rip  make  such  a  disturbance 
before,  and  I  have  never  seen  it  since. 

Next  day,  shortly  before  noon,  the  two  ships  were  ad 
vancing  at  fourteen  knots  toward  the  anchorage.  I  had 
always  endeavored  in  the  Minneapolis,  Arkansas,  and 
Tennessee  to  anchor  in  rather  a  dashing  way,  and  on 
this  occasion  I  was  making  a  special  effort,  because  I 
saw  a  foreign  man-of-war  ahead,  near  where  we  were  to 
anchor.  Shortly  before  getting  to  the  point  where  I  had 
intended  to  slow  down,  the  navigator  reported  to  me  that 
he  had  made  a  mistake  in  the  last  position  he  had  re- 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  463 

ported,  and  that  the  ships  were  very  much  farther  ahead 
than  he  had  supposed.  I  had  an  instantaneous  vision  of 
running  into  a  shoal,  and  having  the  South  Dakota  ram 
the  Tennessee  from  behind  before  she  could  stop  her- 
s-elf,  because  there  was  a  shoal  directly  ahead,  and  this 
shoal  was  not  very  far  away,  if  the  navigator's  last  be 
lief  in  regard  to  our  position  was  correct.  I  thought  it 
was  not  correct,  however,  and  told  him  to  verify  it. 
Meantime  we  kept  charging  ahead.  To  my  intense  re 
lief,  he  came-  to  me  soon,  and  reported  that  we  were 
perfectly  safe,  and  that  the  position  he  had  first  reported 
was  correct. 

So  I  was  able  to  make  a  fine  anchorage,  after  all.  On 
anchoring  I  was  surprised  to  receive  a  salute  of  eleven 
guns  from  the  foreign  man-of-war.  This  salute  was  not 
due  me,  because  I  was  not  a  commodore ;  but  I  realized 
that  the  senior  officer's  pennant  that  our  mast-head  car 
ried  had  been  mistaken  for  a  commodore's  pennant,  and 
so  I  returned  the  salute  gun  for  gun. 

This  was  my  first  salute.  It  was  an  honor  which  I 
did  not  deserve,  but  I  am  not  the  only  man  in  the  world 
who  has  been  accorded  an  honor  which  he  did  not  de 
serve. 

The  first  evening  after  anchoring  in  Panama,  I  asked 
Captain  Smith  of  the  South  Dakota  to  dine  with  me  on 
shore.  It  was  delightful  for  us  to  sit  in  a  quiet  corner  in 
the  hotel  dining-room  in  civilian's  clothes,  and  be  as  un 
dignified  and  boyish  as  we  felt  like  being,  as  an  escape 
from  the  rigid  and  solitary  dinners  we  had  to  have  in 
our  cabins  on  board  ship.  When  I  first  joined  the  Ten 
nessee,  my  boy  (who  was  named  Mann),  used  to  stand 
in  front  of  me,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  table,  and  he 
was  so  fearful  that  he  would  not  foresee  my  wants  that 
he  kept  his  eyes  fixed  on  me  the  entire  time.  This  close 
attention  to  duty,  commendable  as  it  was,  affected  me 
painfully  after  a  while;  and  so  I  told  him  to  stand  be 
hind  my  chair.  I  could  always  tell  that  he  was  there, 
because  I  could  hear  him  breathing. 


464     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

The  next  day  I  asked  Smith  to  go  ashore  with  me  and 
help  me  buy  a  hat.  I  purposed  buying  a  Panama  hat,  and 
on  this  occasion  I  made  up  my  mind  to  throw  prudence  to 
the  winds,  and  buy  the  best  Panama  hat  I  could  find,  see 
ing  visions  of  that  Panama  hat  gracing  my  white  head 
during  the  summers  of  my  declining  years.  So  I  put  a 
good  deal  of  money  into  my  pocket,  and  Smith  and  I 
went  to  the  largest  hat  store  in  the  town.  But  I  could 
not  find  any  hat  there  that  cost  more  than  fifty  Panama 
dollars,  which  was  only  twenty-five  gold  dollars.  Smith 
was  disgusted,  and  said  he  would  not  have  come  ashore 
with  me  if  he  had  known  that  I  was  going  to  buy  a  * '  cheap 
tile." 

That  hat  looked  very  well  the  following  summer,  and 
pretty  well  the  succeeding  summer,  though  it  seemed  to 
me  that  it  looked  unaccountably  smaller.  The  next  sum 
mer  I  had  it  blocked  and  stretched,  but  it  was  smaller 
still.  Every  summer  that  hat  has  become  smaller  and 
smaller,  more  and  more  like  Happy  Hooligan's  hat,  for 
some  reason  which  nobody  can  explain;  so  last  summer 
I  gave  it  away. 

Our  reason  for  going  to  Panama  was  to  get  coal  to 
take  us  to  Sandy  Point  in  the  Strait  of  Magellan.  "We 
coaled,  as  all  ships  do,  in  the  lee  of  Toboga  Island,  in 
the  waters  said  to  be  the  residence  of  "Toboga  Bill,"  a 
famous  shark  of  great  size  and  ferocity.  The  next  fore 
noon,  about  eleven,  the  men  asked  permission  to  go  in 
swimming.  I  was  sorry  they  did  so,  because  I  was  afraid 
of  sharks ;  and  yet  I  could  give  no  reason  for  refusing  per 
mission,  since  it  was  the  custom  for  the  men  in  our  ships 
to  go  in  swimming  there. 

I  gave  permission ;  and  then,  feeling  somewhat  uneasy, 
went  up  on  the  upper  deck,  where  I  could  assure  myself 
that  all  due  precautions  were  taken.  The  booms  which 
protrude  from  the  ship's  side  forward  when  at  anchor, 
and  are  used  for  securing  boats  to,  were  lowered  until 
the  lower  ends  touched  the  water,  so  that  the  men  could 
get  on  board  the  ship  readily ;  and  a  boat  on  each  side  was 


465 

stationed  in  such  a  position  that,  in  case  of  threatened 
drowning,  it  could  reach  the  danger-spot  in  a  few  sec 
onds. 

At  one  time,  when  there  were  more  than  five  hundred 
men  in  the  water,  my  glance  happened  to  go  to  a  man  on 
the  port  side.  The  water  was  absolutely  smooth,  and  I 
could  see  the  top  of  his  head  just  even  with  the  surface 
of  the  water,  as  though  he  were  " treading  water." 
There  seemed  nothing  remarkable  in  his  appearance  un 
til  I  noticed  that  he  was  gradually  sinking.  There  was 
no  sign  of  any  struggle,  and  there  was  no  blood;  yet  he 
was  undeniably  sinking  slowly.  By  this  time  some  of 
the  men  near  him  had  noticed  his  disappearance  and  had 
given  the  alarm.  The  boat  on  that  side  pulled  up  to 
where  he  had  been  last  seen,  and  many  men  dived  for 
him. 

That  is  the  end  of  the  story.  He  was  never  seen  after 
ward,  and  his  body  was  never  found.  He  was  a  healthy 
young  man  of  twenty-two,  and  no  good  reason  was  as 
signed  by  anybody  for  his  sinking.  One  theory  was 
that  some  shark  had  seized  him  by  the  foot  and  dragged 
him  down,  and  that  the  shock  had  for  some  reason  been 
so  great  that  he  did  not  even  struggle. 

Panama  Bay  was  intensely  hot,  and  so  we  looked  for 
ward  with  pleasure  to  the  trip  down  the  west  coast  of 
South  America,  over  the  smooth  ocean  of  those  regions, 
and  under  their  dim  sunshine.  We  knew  that  we  should 
meet  rough  weather  when  we  got  to  the  Strait  of  Magel 
lan  and  the  rocky  peaks  of  Cape  Pillar.  The  afternoon 
before  arriving  there  I  spent  all  the  time  at  my  desk, 
reading  the  sailing  instructions  about  the  dangers  near 
the  entrance  and  through  the  strait,  especially  near  the 
entrance.  Sailing  directions  are  written  with  the  in 
tention  of  pointing  out  the  existing  dangers  to  mariners, 
and  they  are  written  so  realistically  as  to  impress  the 
mariners  very  fully  with  those  dangers.  On  this  par 
ticular  afternoon  the  ship  was  rolling  and  pitching  vio 
lently,  and  I  could  hear  the  wind  howling  on  deck  and 


466     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

feel  the  engines  thumping  under  me.  The  combined  ef 
fect  of  this  and  what  I  had  been  intently  reading  sud 
denly  gave  me  a  sort  of  nervous  spasm  that  must  have 
lasted  fifteen  minutes.  The  idea  of  rushing  into  the  rock- 
bound  strait,  in  the  midst  of  the  terrific  seas  I  had  been 
reading  about,  suddenly  filled  me  with  dread.  It  seemed 
a  thing  that  I  could  not  possibly  undertake.  The  feel 
ing  grew  more  and  more  acute.  Then  it  suddenly  passed 
away. 

I  wished  to  enter  the  strait  as  soon  after  daylight  as 
possible  the  next  morning,  in  order  to  get  to  Sandy  Point 
that  night.  So  I  got  the  ships  within  a  short  distance 
of  the  entrance  the  night  before,  and  slowed  down  to 
such  speed  as  would  get  us  to  the  entrance  before  sun 
rise.  I  rose  an  hour  before  daylight,  and  waited  on  the 
bridge  for  perhaps  an  hour,  watching  the  magnificent 
spectacle  of  the  day  breaking  behind  a  dim,  rocky  bar 
rier  that  seemed  to  be  in  front  of  us,  closing  the  way 
entirely,  and  covered  with  clouds  that  descended  to  the 
water 's-edge.  When  the  sun  rose,  these  clouds  took  on 
various  reddish  tints,  dark  and  light,  and  became  gradu 
ally  thinner.  As  they  became  thinner,  they  melted  away 
slowly  near  the  top,  unveiling  more  and  more  of  the 
sky,  and  letting  an  occasional  snow-clad  peak  be  seen. 
Then  they  retreated  gradually  at  the  bottom,  and  dis 
closed  a  rocky  shore  and  tremendous  waves  breaking  on 
it.  Finally  they  uncovered  a  narrow  entrance  that 
pierced  those  rocks,  and  extended  toward  the  east. 

By  this  time  I  was  heading  toward  the  entrance  at 
slow  speed,  with  the  South  Dakota  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
astern.  I  increased  the  speed  now,  and  then  increased  it 
again;  and  in  a  few  minutes  we  were  going  sixteen 
knots,  steering  directly  for  the  narrow  entrance,  and 
headed  at  a  light  reddish  fog,  which  limited  the  distance 
we  could  see  ahead,  but  which  receded  exactly  as  rapidly 
from  us  as  we  advanced  toward  it. 

All  that  day  the  most  magnificent  panorama  the  world 
contains  passed  before  us  on  both  sides  at  a  speed  of 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  467 

sixteen  knots  an  hour  as  we  steamed  by  glaciers  and 
mountains  and  cliffs  and  forests  and  around  bold  prom 
ontories,  sometimes  in  bright,  clear  air,  and  sometimes 
in  brief  snow-storms.  At  exactly  nine  o'clock  we  an 
chored  at  Punta  Arenas,  which  the  English  call  Sandy 
Point. 

The  next  morning  I  sent  a  boat  ashore  for  the  Ameri 
can  consul,  and  he  came  off  to  call.  He  was  a  delightful, 
breezy  old  gentleman,  who  told  me  the  first  time  he  met 
me  (and  at  least  thirteen  times  afterward)  that  he  was 
descended  from  "Mad  Anthony  Wayne"  and  that  his  last 
post  had  been  in  the  Falkland  Islands.  He  said  that  the 
Americans  on  shore  wanted  to  give  us  a  ball,  and  he  asked 
if  the  captains  and  officers  would  accept  it.  I  told  him 
that  we  should  be  delighted,  and  he  went  ashore  to  make 
arrangements. 

Shortly  afterward  he  sent  back  a  message  to  the  ship, 
asking  if  he  could  have  the  bands  on  the  two  ships  to 
play  at  the  ball.  I  sent  back  word  that  I  should  be  de 
lighted  to  send  them.  Then  he  sent  off  a  message,  asking 
if  he  could  have  some  flags  with  which  to  decorate  the 
room.  I  answered,  " Certainly."  Then  he  sent  off  a 
message,  asking  if  I  would  send  some  sailors  ashore 
to  hang  the  flags  and  arrange  the  room.  I  agreed  to  this. 
Then  he  sent  off  a  message,  asking  if  he  could  have  two 
hundred  camp-chairs  for  the  guests  to  sit  on.  I  agreed. 
Then  he  sent  off  a  message,  asking  if  I  would  send  some 
carpenters  ashore  to  plane  off  the  floor  and  otherwise 
improve  the  room.  I  agreed.  Then  he  sent  off  a  mes 
sage,  asking  if  he  could  borrow  a  lot  of  crockery  for  the 
supper.  I  agreed.  Then  he  sent  off  a  message,  asking  to 
borrow  the  silver  presented  to  both  ships,  especially  the 
punch-bowls. 

Finally  the  ball  occurred,  and  it  was  extremely  pleas 
ant.  The  people  in  that  region  were  evidently  healthy, 
and  did  not  have  the  opportunity  of  going  to  many  balls, 
for  they  started  dancing  about  nine  o'clock  and  kept  it 
up  until  almost  morning,  everybody  seeming  to  dance 


468     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

almost  every  dance.  One  of  the  most  indefatigable  was 
the  American  consul,  who  was  seventy  years  old. 

That  evening  I  met  an  agreeable  lady  who  asked  me  to 
come  next  day  to  the  christening  of  her  youngest  child, 
who  was  named  Decima,  because  she  was  the  tenth.  I 
went  to  the  christening,  and  found  a  pleasant  party  as 
sembled  in  a  well-appointed  house,  with  all  the  accom 
paniments  of  wealth  and  taste.  I  met  a  particularly 
charming  lady  there  who  was  perhaps  thirty-five  years 
old,  and  who  was  specially  refined  and  gracious  in  dress 
and  manner  and  general  appearance.  Feeling  a  little 
surprised  at  meeting  there  a  lady  whom  I  would  not 
have  been  surprised  at  meeting  in  Paris  or  New  York,  but 
thinking  that  possibly  she  might  be  a  recent  comer,  I 
asked  her  where  she  came  from.  She  answered,  with 
a  smile,  that  she  came  from  Tierra  del  Fuego.  I  said 
that  I  had  heard  that  Tierra  del  Fuego  was  inhabited  by 
people  of  the  lowest  order  of  civilization  that  could  be 
found  in  the  world,  and  asked  her  how  it  happened  that 
she  came  from  such  a  place.  She  answered  that  within 
the  last  few  years  there  had  been  a  tremendous  influx 
into  Tierra  del  Fuego  of  young  Englishmen,  who  saw 
an  opportunity  to  make  their  fortunes  in  raising  sheep 
and  selling  wool ;  that  her  husband  had  been  a  poor  young 
lawyer  in  London,  with  no  chance  at  all  of  accomplish 
ing  much,  but  that  now  he  was  a  prosperous  sheep-raiser 
and  getting  rich  with  great  rapidity. 

We  found  waiting  for  us  at  Sandy  Point  a  British 
collier,  sent  to  coal  us.  After  coaling  us,  the  captain 
came  into  my  cabin,  the  night  before  we  left,  to  receive 
written  orders  from  me  as  to  where  he  was  to  go  next. 
After  this  had  been  done,  we  got  into  conversation,  and 
I  found  that  he  was  in  the  employ  of  the  Gowers  in 
England,  and  was  very  well  acquainted  with  Mrs.  Gower, 
who  was  a  cousin  of  my  wife. 

We  got  under  way  one  cold  morning,  and  steamed 
rapidly  to  the  northward  and  eastward,  toward  the  At 
lantic  Ocean.  Then  we  headed  toward  the  north  and 


469 

steamed  for  Maldonado,  rolling  heavily  to  starboard  and 
to  port  in  the  long  southwest  swells  that  are  characteristic 
of  those  regions. 

In  the  Strait  of  Magellan,  and  for  some  distance  to  the 
north,  we  were  accompanied  by  huge  albatrosses.  They 
were  so  big,  would  fly  so  close,  and  keep  so  even  with 
the  ship  without  apparent  effort,  that  we  would  watch 
them  for  hours,  trying  to  solve  the  mystery  of  their  flight. 
At  this  time  the  aeroplane  had  become  an  assured  suc 
cess,  and  these  albatrosses  so  impressed  me  with  the 
possibilities  that  human  flight  had  before  it  that  I  re 
solved  that  I  would  study  up  that  subject  as  soon  as  I 
got  an  opportunity.  I  realized  that  aeroplanes  had 
1  'come  to  stay,"  and  that  they  would  get  larger  and 
larger,  and  that  then  the  great  speed  of  which  they  were 
capable  would  make  them  of  tremendous  value  in  war 
to  any  nation  that  had  the  foresight  to  develop  their 
possibilities  in  time. 

About  the  middle  of  April  we  arrived  at  Maldonado  and 
found  Admiral  Staunton  waiting  for  us  with  the  Mon 
tana  and  North  Carolina.  There  was  a  British  ship 
stationed  there,  and  I  soon  struck  up  a  pleasant  acquaint 
ance  with  her  captain.  He  was  a  splendid  fellow  of  the 
British  type,  and  I  remember  how  delighted  he  was  with 
the  place,  because  there  was  so  much  opportunity  for  the 
officers  and  men  to  take  long  walks,  go  swimming  and 
fishing,  and  indulge  in  the  other  outdoor  sports  that 
Britons  love. 

Staunton  made  me  chief  of  staff  of  his  special  service 
squadron,  and  I  remember  a  distinctly  stiff  and  formal 
call  that  we  made,  under  the  chaperonage  of  the  Ameri 
can  minister,  upon  the  President  of  Uruguay. 

The  reason  for  the  special  service  squadron  being  in 
this  part  of  the  world  was  the  centennial  celebration 
which  the  Argentine  Government  was  about  to  hold. 
The  American  ships  drew  too  much  water  to  go  up  the 
Eiver  Plata  to  Buenos  Aires,  and  so  we  went  to  Puerto 
Militar,  a  military  and  naval  port  near  Bahia  Blanca,  in 


470     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  southern  end  of  Argentina.  On  the  latter  part  of 
the  day  before  we  arrived  I  was  stricken  with  a  backache 
that  was  enormous;  at  least  so  it  seemed  to  me.  It  got 
worse  and  worse  during  the  day,  and  I  came  near  to 
sending  for  the  doctor;  but  as  I  had  kept  off  the  sick 
list  during  the  entire  cruise,  I  determined  to  fight  it 
out.  I  said  to  myself  that  we  would  not  get  to  our  an 
chorage  until  the  following  morning,  and  that  after  I 
had  made  my  report  to  the  admiral  at  eight  o'clock  that 
evening,  I  would  go  to  bed.  I  was  in  the  chart-house 
at  eight  o  'clock,  and  was  just  about  to  go  below  to  report 
to  the  admiral  when  he  came  into  the  chart-house.  It 
was  a  miserable  night,  wet  and  cold ;  just  the  worst  night 
for  a  backache.  I  made  my  report  to  the  admiral,  and 
then,  to  my  horror,  he  started  a  conversation  about  the 
coming  ceremonies,  of  such  a  kind  that  I  could  not  go 
below  without  telling  him  that  I  did  not  feel  well;  and 
this  I  did  not  want  to  do.  The  pain  in  my  back  grew 
worse  and  worse,  until  finally,  about  five  minutes  before 
twelve,  it  left  me  altogether.  It  has  not  yet  returned. 

From  Puerto  Militar  to  Buenos  Aires  is  about  four 
hundred  miles.  The  Argentine  Government  asked  the 
admiral  to  go  there  with  the  captains,  and  to  send  as 
many  sailors  as  he  could  spare  to  take  part  in  the  parade 
and  other  ceremonies. 

I  went  with  the  other  captains,  and  after  almost  freez 
ing  to  death  in  the  European  style  of  sleeping-car,  we 
arrived  at  Buenos  Aires.  We  were  met  at  the  railroad 
station  by  officers  detailed  for  the  purpose,  and  escorted 
to  our  rooms  in  the  principal  hotel.  Each  captain  had  a 
fine  room  and  a  private  bath,  and  the  admiral  had  a 
parlor  besides.  We  were  told  that  we  were  to  stay  at 
the  hotel  for  ten  days  as  the  guests  of  the  Government, 
and  requested  to  order  anything  we  wanted,  including 
automobiles  and  wine. 

I  have  never  seen  such  lavish  entertainment  as  in 
Buenos  Aires  during  those  ten  days.  Buenos  Aires  re 
minded  us  of  Paris,  except  that  the  people  were  bigger, 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  471 

cacli  family  averaged  about  eight  children,  and  there 
were  no  signs  of  poverty.  A  Portuguese  officer  said  to 
me,  "In  Buenos  Aires  there  are  a  million  people,  all 
rich. ' '  The  city  was  decorated  with  flags  that  delighted 
the  eye  by  day,  and  with  electric-lights  that  delighted  the 
eye  by  night.  The  very  handsome  American  Minister, 
Mr.  Charles  H.  Sherill,  was  evidently  persona  gratissima 
to  the  people,  and  they  made  us  think  that  we  were  also. 
Besides  a  beautiful  dinner  and  dance  at  the  minister's 
house,  the  social  incidents  that  I  remember  the  most 
clearly  were  the  dinner  given  by  the  president,  the  after 
noon  at  the  jockey  club,  and  one  evening  at  the  Teatro 
Colon. 

The  dinner  given  by  the  president  was  in  a  large  offi 
cial  building.  There  was  a  great  strike  going  on  at 
the  time,  and  the  military  had  virtually  taken  charge 
of  the  city;  so  that  it  was  a  little  disconcerting,  imme 
diately  after  our  arrival  in  the  reception-room  on  the 
first  floor  of  the  building,  to  have  all  the  electric  lights 
suddenly  go  out  and  leave  us  in  almost  total  darkness.  In 
about  ten  minutes,  however,  lighted  candles  were 
brought ;  and  by  the  dim  light  they  gave  we  threaded  our 
way  along  what  seemed  like  interminable  corridors.  Sud 
denly  the  electric  lights  flashed  up  again,  and  then  they 
went  out.  After  about  ten  minutes  they  lighted  them 
selves  again,  and  then  went  out.  Finally  they  settled 
down  to  good  behavior,  and  we  had  an  admirable  dinner. 
Each  guest  at  the  dinner  received  a  medal  about  twice  the 
size  of  a  twenty-dollar  gold  piece,  which,  we  were  told, 
was  of  gold,  but  with  only  half  as  much  gold  in  it  as  is 
in  the  usual  coin. 

The  scene  at  the  jockey  club  was  exhilarating  and  mag 
nificent,  made  so  largely  by  that  touch  of  military  splen 
dor  which  only  nations  of  military  character  know  how 
to  give.  I  had  never  been  at  any  of  the  military  re 
views  in  France  or  Germany,  and  as  my  experience  with 
race-track  events  was  confined  to  events  like  those  in 
the  United  States,  Hong-Kong,  and  Shanghai,  I  wyas  nat- 


472     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

urally  impressed  with  the  dash  and  precision  and  beauty 
with  which  the  proceedings  were  carried  on. 

We  were  invited  to  two  performances  at  the  Teatro 
Colon,  the  opera-house,  each  captain  having  a  small  box 
which  would  hold  himself  and  three  other  officers.  I 
remember  that  the  first  night  the  opera  was  ' '  Rigoletto, " 
and  I  remember  that,  when  the  performance  was  about 
half  finished,  the  guests,  of  whom  I  was  one,  were  in 
vited  to  the  supper-room,  where  an  extremely  elaborate 
supper  was  served,  and  where  we  were  presented  to  the 
Infanta  of  Spain. 

Whenever  I  think  of  the  Argentine  Centennial,  I  smell 
champagne. 

Toward  the  close  of  our  stay  the  president  reviewed  the 
Argentine  fleet  at  a  place  some  miles  down  the  river. 
The  invited  guests  went  down  in  river  steamers,  and 
were  surprised  at  the  excellent  showing  the  Argentine 
ships  made,  and  the  precision  and  effectiveness  with 
which  all  the  proceedings  of  the  day  were  carried  out. 
One  of  the  incidents  was  a  boat-race  in  which  all  the  ves 
sels  took  part,  both  Argentine  and  foreign.  The  race 
was  won  by  the  Japanese. 

On  the  way  back  in  the  steamer  that  evening  I  was 
saluted  by  a  middle-aged  Japanese  officer,  who  made  some 
pertinent  remark.  This  led  to  conversation,  and  we 
walked  up  and  down  the  deck  for  some  time.  Finally  he 
stopped,  drew  himself  up  with  a  military  salute,  bowed, 
and  departed.  About  five  minutes  after  that,  chancing 
to  walk  on  another  part  of  the  deck,  I  saw  that  Japanese 
officer  sitting  down  in  a  corner,  writing  rapidly  in  a 
note-book. 

From  Puerto  Militar  we  went  to  Montevideo,  and  from 
there  we  went  to  Rio  Janeiro. 

We  anchored  in  the  beautiful  bay  of  Rio  Janeiro  on  a 
bright,  warm  afternoon  about  the  first  of  June.  The 
harbor  of  Rio  is  beautiful,  but  not  so  beautiful  as  the 
pictures  of  it  indicate,  because  of  the  muddy  color  of  the 
water,  and  the  numerous  patches  of  bare  yellow  soil, 


473 

especially  on  the  eastern  side.  The  city  is  handsome  in 
parts,  especially  the  new  parts;  and  its  cleanliness  in 
later  years,  since  the  yellow  fever  danger  was  located  in 
the  mosquito,  has  become  quite  painful. 

The  four  ships  anchored  in  column  near  the  Minas 
Geraes,  the  newest  battle-ship  that  the  Brazilian  Navy 
had  acquired.  We  had  come  to  think  that  our  big  15,000- 
ton  armored  cruisers  were  very  fine ;  but  here  was  a  bat 
tleship  of  27,000  tons  displacement. 

We  were  entertained  delightfully  by  the  naval  authori 
ties.  The  pleasantest  occasion  was  a  trip  taken  in  auto 
mobiles  far  up  into  the  mountains.  Before  going  up 
there,  I  had  concluded  that  the  harbor  of  Rio  was  not  so 
beautiful  in  point  of  natural  scenery  as  the  harbor  of  New 
York ;  but  after  going  up  into  the  mountains,  and  seeing 
the  different  magnificent  views  from  them,  I  realized,  as 
we  all  did,  that  no  part  of  the  world  that  we  had  ever 
been  in  was  so  beautiful  as  the  environs  of  Rio  de 
Janeiro.  The  way  up  was  very  steep,  and  a  great  deal 
of  it  lay  over  roads  that  had  been  made  at  the  cost  of 
the  lives  of  many  men,  many  years  before.  It  seemed  in 
credible  that  men  could  have  made  such  roads  with  the 
crude  engineering  facilities  that  existed  at  the  time  when 
they  were  made.  The  only  explanation  was  that  thou 
sands  and  thousands  of  men  had  been  worked  like  beasts 
under  the  lash  of  the  conqueror. 

We  had  expected  to  get  back  to  Rio  by  early  after 
noon,  and  have  lunch  there,  but  hour  succeeded  hour, 
and  we  kept  heading  away  from  Rio !  I  \vas  becoming 
alarmed  at  the  prospect  of  starving  to  death  in  the  moun 
tains,  when  suddenly  we  reached  a  clearing  three  or  four 
acres  in  extent,  where  we  saw  luncheon-tables  spread  un 
der  gigantic  trees. 

I  have  never  had  a  more  sumptuous  lunch  at  Delmoni- 
co  's  or  the  Plaza.  Everything  had  been  brought  up  from 
Rio  in  refrigerating-cars  (except  the  waiters),  and  every 
thing  had  been  provided  and  thought  of  in  advance.  As 
we  sat  at  our  tables  under  enormous  Brazilian  trees,  and 


474     FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

looked  out  over  a  landscape  that  included  many  miles 
of  sea  and  mountain,  the  situation  seemed  incongruous. 
Things  were  a  little  formal,  however ;  for  the  Americans 
and  Brazilians  did  not  know  each  other  very  well,  nor 
did  either  speak  well  the  other's  language.  At  length 
an  officer  who  sat  on  my  left,  and  who  was  the  executive 
officer  of  the  Minas  Geraes,  sprang  to  his  feet  and  raised 
a  champagne-glass  above  his  head:  "Oh,  dis  is  doo 
damn  stupid!"  he  cried.  "I  vish  to  make  things  more 
cheerful!  Hooray!  hooray!  hooray!"  We  all  joined 
in  the  hoorays,  and  after  that  we  were  more  congenial. 

At  Rio  we  had  the  honor  of  meeting  a  man  who  was  a 
statesman  in  the  real  sense  of  that  much  prostituted 
word.  This  was  the  Baron  Rio  Branco,  the  secretary  of 
state  of  the  Republic  of  Brazil.  It  was  common  talk 
that  he  could  have  been  president  at  any  time  for  many 
years  if  he  had  so  desired;  but  that  he  preferred  to  be 
secretary  of  state,  knowing  that  that  was  really  what 
he  ought  to  be,  and  that  that  was  the  position  in  which 
he  could  be  the  most  useful  to  his  country.  The  com 
mon  phrase  in  speaking  of  him  was  uhe  has  rendered 
enormous  services."  People  through  the  country  ap 
preciated  what  he  had  done,  and  honored  him  for  it. 

One  of  the  small  peculiarities  connected  with  him  that 
struck  me  curiously  was  the  seeming  lack  of  orderliness 
in  the  large  room  which  he  occupied  as  his  office.  One  of 
his  secretaries  told  me  that  although  papers  were  strewn 
about  the  room  and  piled  in  heaps  in  what  looked  like 
hopeless  confusion,  yet  that  the  minister  knew  where 
every  paper  was ;  and  that  although  they  had  often  tried 
to  induce  him  to  let  them  adopt  modern  methods  of  re 
cording  and  filing  papers,  they  had  been  unable  to  wean 
him  from  the  habit  which  had  grown  on  him  during  all 
of  his  official  life. 

On  our  way  north  we  stopped  at  Culebra.  I  remem 
ber  the  officer  who  was  in  command  there  telling  me  that 
he  was  suffering  from  what  he  called  "Culebritis,"  an 
intense  weariness  of  the  monotonous  life,  and  especially 


THE  CAPTAIN'S  CRUISE  475 

of  the  uninterrupted  succession  of  bright,  sunshiny  days. 

From  Culebra  we  went  to  Hampton  Roads,  and  thence 
to  the  southern  drill  grounds,  where  we  held  our  day  and 
night  target-practice. 

On  the  day  after  anchoring  at  Hampton  Roads,  I  re 
ceived  a  letter  from  Rear-Admiral  Wainwright,  the  aid 
for  operations,  saying  that  Admiral  Dewey  and  he  would 
like  to  have  me  become  a  member  of  the  General  Board, 
in  the  place  of  Captain  Knapp.  I  was  overjoyed  at  re 
ceiving  this  letter,  because  duty  on  the  General  Board 
was  the  best  possible  duty  a  captain  could  have  on 
shore,  especially  if  he  cherished  aspiration  toward  flying 
his  flag  afloat.  For  an  officer  to  be  made  a  member  of 
the  General  Board  was  to  have  the  stamp  of  official  ap 
proval  put  on  him;  for  Admiral  Dewey  was  more  than 
careful  as  to  whom  he  allowed  to  become  a  member  of 
the  board. 

So  I  answered  the  letter  at  once,  saying  that  I  should 
consider  it  an  honor  to  become  a  member  of  the  Gen 
eral  Board.  In  a  few  days  Captain  Harry  S.  Knapp, 
the  most  popular  officer  in  the  navy,  reported  on  board 
as  my  relief.  That  afternoon  I  was  pulled  ashore  in 
my  gig  by  a  volunteer  crew  of  chief  petty  officers  in  a 
half  gale  of  wind  and  a  driving  rain. 


CHAPTEE  XXXI 

THE   GENERAL   BOARD,   AERONAUTICS,   AND   NAVAL   POWER 

I  WENT  at  once  to  Greenwich,  Connecticut,  where  my 
little  family  was  staying  at  the  Edgewood  Hotel; 
and  from  there  in  a  few  days  we  went  to  Newport,  where 
the  General  Board  was  in  session  at  the  war  college. 

The  General  Board  had  a  large  room  with  clerical 
offices  attached,  and  I  soon  fell  into  step  with  the  work. 
It  was  of  the  most  interesting  kind  possible,  and  I  found 
that  it  was  carried  on  with  the  most  remarkable  absence 
of  anything  like  personal  self-seeking.  There  were  eight 
officers  on  the  board,  and  each  of  these  had  a  commander 
or  lieutenant-commander  as  assistant,  who  had  no  vote 
in  the  deliberations  of  the  board.  The  aim  of  every 
man  seemed  merely  to  be  to  find  out  and  urge  whatever 
was  best  for  the  navy,  and  it  was  considered  a  virtue 
in  a  man  to  be  willing  to  say  that  he  had  made  a  mistake 
and  to  change  his  opinion  on  proper  evidence.  Noth 
ing  was  considered  more  deplorable  than  pride  of  opin 
ion. 

On  the  first  of  October  the  General  Board  went  to 
Washington  and  resumed  its  work  in  its  large  rooms  in 
the  Mills  Building,  near  the  Navy  Department.  Ad 
miral  Dewey  did  not  go  to  Newport  in  the  summers,  but 
he  always  met  the  board  on  or  about  the  first  of  October 
in  Washington. 

I  went  with  my  family  to  Washington,  and  engaged  a 
pleasant  apartment  in  Stoneleigh  Court.  We  enjoyed 
the  Washington  winter  tremendously,  with  its  round  of 
simple  entertainments  among  friends,  and  splendid  en 
tertainments  in  the  official  circles,  and  the  general  air 
of  leisure  and  cleanliness  and  quiet. 

476 


AERONAUTICS  AND  NAVAL  POWER      477 

When  I  first  became  a  member  of  the  board,  the  duty  to 
which  I  was  specially  assigned  was  that  of  material, — 
that  is,  the  general  subject  of  ships,  guns,  etc., — but  about 
the  first  of  December  "Tommy"  Howard  was  promoted 
to  the  grade  of  rear-admiral  and  given  command  of  a 
division  in  the  fleet,  and  I  was  promoted  to  take  charge 
of  his  section,  which  was  the  section  that  dealt  with 
war  plans.  On  this  section  I  had  two  assistants,  Com 
mander  Hoogewerff  and  Lieutenant-Commander  Madi 
son. 

I  gradually  realized,  to  my  disappointment,  that  the 
war  plans  of  the  General  Board  were  so  general  in  char 
acter  as  hardly  to  be  war  plans  at  all,  and  to  consist 
mainly  of  information  of  all  kinds  concerning  various 
countries,  accompanied  with  suggestions  for  the  comman- 
der-in-chief  of  the  fleet.  I  found,  also,  that  the  work  of 
the  General  Board  was  much  less  influential  in  guiding  the 
strategy  of  the  navy  than  I  had  supposed.  I  knew  that 
the  General  Board  had  no  legal  status,  and  that  its  func 
tions  were  advisory  only;  but  I  had  not  known  before 
how  uncertain  was  its  hold  upon  the  navy,  and  how  care 
ful  Admiral  Dewey  had  to  be  in  regard  to  the  attitude  of 
the  General  Board  toward  the  Navy  Department  lest  the 
General  Board  be  abolished  altogether.  When  I  reached 
Washington  on  the  first  of  October,  1910,  the  General 
Board  had  been  in  existence  about  eight  years.  There 
had  always  been  some  jealousy  of  it  on  the  part  of  the 
bureau  chiefs,  each  of  whom,  with  an  occasional  excep 
tion  here  and  there,  had  resented  any  suggestion  of  the 
General  Board  which  seemed  to  him  to  interfere  in  any 
way  with  his  prerogatives  as  chief  of  bureau.  Secretary 
Meyer  was  said  to  be  heartily  in  favor  of  the  General 
Board,  because  he  found  that  it  was  of  great  assistance 
to  him  in  making  recommendations  along  lines  with  which 
he  could  not  be  familiar,  and  which  he  did  not  have  time 
to  study.  This  was  a  great  advantage ;  but  it  was  not  so 
great  an  advantage  as  it  might  seem  to  be,  from  the  fact 
that  the  bureau  chiefs  were  the  assistants  of  the  secre- 


478     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIKAL 

tary  by  law,  whereas  the  General  Board  did  not  exist  by 
law  at  all.  Two  of  the  four  aids,  Rear-Admiral  Wain- 
wright  and  Captain  F.  F.  Fletcher,  who  had  succeeded 
Admiral  Swift  as  "Aid  for  Material,"  were  members 
of  the  General  Board;  and  because  of  this,  and  because 
of  the  unanimity  of  purpose  of  the  aids  and  the  General 
Board,  the  two  organizations  got  on  together  extremely 
well.  Admiral  Dewey,  of  course,  was  the  paramount 
figure  on  the  board;  in  fact,  without  his  prestige  the 
board  could  not  have  survived.  Admiral  Dewey  handled 
the  board  with  exceeding  skill,  keeping  himself  in  the 
background  and  never  taking  part  in  any  discussions,  but 
nevertheless  keeping  a  tight  rein,  which  all  of  us  felt, 
though  none  of  us  saw.  One  day  he  came  into  my  room, 
where  I  was  discussing  a  matter  with  some  officers,  and 
said,  with  that  pleasant  lack  of  dignity  which  he  some 
times  assumed,  "Fiske  is  just  like  a  midshipman;  he 
takes  his  hands  out  of  his  pockets  whenever  he  sees  me 
coming. ' ' 

In  conformity  with  the  promise  which  I  had  made  to 
myself  in  the  Strait  of  Magellan,  I  took  up  the  study  of 
aeronautics  shortly  after  reaching  Washington.  There 
was  not  much  to  learn  then  for  a  man  who  had  the 
knowledge  of  mechanics  that  I  had  gradually  acquired  in 
my  experience  as  inventor  and  navy  officer ;  in  fact,  I  was 
surprised  to  find  how  little  there  was  to  learn,  and  how 
little  had  been  done,  especially  by  armies  and  navies,  and 
especially  by  our  army  and  navy.  Some  years  after 
ward  Lord  Northcliffe  told  me  that  he  was  with  the 
Wright  Brothers  a  great  deal  when  they  first  went  to 
Europe  after  they  had  made  their  memorable  flight  in 
1903,  and  that  the  only  government  that  took  up  the  mat 
ter  very  seriously  was  the  Italian  Government.  He 
added  that  the  German  Government  was  not  very  far 
behind,  but  that  the  British  and  French  governments 
were  immeasurably  so. 

I  had  never  known  much  about  war  plans  before  join 
ing  the  General  Board,  but  I  had  supposed  that  war 


plans  were  of  the  kind  concerning  which  the  story  was 
told  (and  believed)  that  when  the  war  broke  out  between 
France  and  Prussia,  and  Moltke  was  wakened  one  night 
and  informed  officially  that  war  had  been  declared,  he 
roused  himself  to  say  that  the  plans  and  orders  could  be 
found  in  a  certain  drawer  in  a  certain  desk,  and  then 
turned  over  in  bed  and  went  to  sleep.  To  my  surprise,  I 
could  find  no  such  plans  or  any  project  for  making  any. 
As  I  was  the  head  of  the  section  on  war  plans,  that  duty 
seemed  to  devolve  upon  me;  but  I  realized  that  I  was 
wholly  unequal  to  a  task  that  required  the  very  highest 
qualities  of  strategic  knowledge  and  ability.  I  knew 
nothing  whatever  about  making  war  plans.  I  had  been 
a  good  captain  of  a  ship,  but  as  captain  of  a  ship  I  had 
been  merely  carrying  out  duties  for  which  I  had  been 
educated  during  a  naval  career  of  nearly  forty  years.  I 
had  not  been  educated  in  making  war  plans,  and  I  did 
not  know  anybody  who  had.  The  man  who  came  the 
closest  to  knowing  about  things  of  that  kind  was  Captain 
T.  M.  Potts,  who  was  chief  intelligence  officer  of  the  navy, 
and  member  of  the  board,  and  who  had  served  for  three 
years  in  Germany  as  naval  attache.  Potts  told  me  that 
the  German  Naval  General  Staff,  like  the  German  Army 
General  Staff,  kept  a  score  or  more  of  officers  at  work 
making  war  plans,  and  that  these  officers  had  been  spe 
cially  selected  for  the  task  and  trained  for  it  afterward 
during  many  years.  He  told  me  that  the  General  Staff 
not  only  made  out  war  plans,  but  also,  as  accessory  to 
the  war  plans,  made  plans  which  covered  all  the  tactical 
and  strategical  drills  and  maneuvers  of  the  fleet;  and 
that,  when  these  tactical  and  strategical  drills  and 
maneuvers  were  carried  out  by  the  fleet,  certain  mem 
bers  of  the  General  Staff  would  go  out  with  the  fleet  as 
observers,  and  note  how  their  plans  were  being  carried 
out,  for  the  double  purpose  of  noting  and  comparing  the 
degrees  of  skill  of  the  various  officers  and  of  seeing  where 
the  drills  could  be  altered  and  improved. 

After  my  conversations  with  Potts,  I  came  to  feel  thai 


480     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

though  the  system  of  training  of  our  officers  was  good  it 
had  not  advanced  far  enough.  It  looked  to  me  a  case  of 
arrested  development.  It  seemed  to  me  that  the  navy 
had  progressed  up  to  a  certain  point  and  then  ceased  to 
progress,  or  at  least  that  it  had  ceased  to  progress  as  far 
as  the  German  Navy  had.  This  was  an  explanation  to  me 
of  why  we  had  tactical  drills  in  the  fleet,  but  did  not  have 
fleet  tactics. 

In  thinking  about  the  possibilities  of  aeronautics  and 
the  fact  that  our  so  called  "war  plans"  seemed  to  con 
tain  no  definite  plan  for  doing  any  definite  thing,  I  sud 
denly  saw  what  seemed  to  me  a  way  to  making  a  distinct 
suggestion.  At  this  time  it  was  supposed  that,  in  case 
war  broke  out  with  Japan,  the  Japanese  would  imme 
diately  take  possession  of  the  Philippine  Islands  by  land 
ing  a  very  large  force  of  men  upon  the  unprotected  shores 
of  the  island  of  Luzon ;  and  that  the  United  States  would 
then  have  to  send  out  a  tremendous  fleet  to  fight  the 
Japanese  fleet  in  its  home  waters,  as  Russia  had  done  six 
years  before.  That  prospect  was  far  from  alluring,  and 
so  the  idea  which  came  to  me  seemed  not  bad  in  the  cir 
cumstances.  My  idea  was  to  prevent  the  Japanese  from 
landing  at  all  by  using  aeroplanes  against  them  while  they 
were  trying  to  land.  I  pointed  out  to  myself  that  the 
Japanese  would  have  to  send  any  invading  party  in  a 
large  number  of  lightly  constructed  transports ;  that  when 
those  transports  got  near  the  coasts  of  Luzon,  they  would 
have  to  stop  and  get  out  large  numbers  of  boats,  and 
bring  those  boats  alongside  the  transports;  that  they 
would  then  have  to  fill  those  boats  with  troops,  equip 
ments,  ammunition,  and  arms  of  different  sorts;  that 
those  heavily  filled  boats  would  then  have  to  be  towed 
very  slowly  toward  the  shore  in  some  place  where  the 
water  was  smooth ;  that  those  boats  would  then  have  to 
be  discharged  on  the  beach ;  and  that  during  all  that  time 
the  boats  and  the  transports  would  be  almost  perfectly 
helpless,  especially  the  boats,  if  large  numbers  of  aero 
planes  hovered  over  them  and  dropped  bombs  upon  them. 


AERONAUTICS  AND  NAVAL  POWER       481 

I  talked  over  this  matter  with  Admiral  Dewey  and 
certain  members  of  the  board  individually,  and  most  of 
them  seemed  to  think  that  the  idea  was  worth  proposing. 
So  I  brought  it  up  one  day  before  a  meeting  of  the 
board;  but  the  Aid  for  Operations  became  so  extremely 
emphatic  in  his  protest  against  taking  up  the  time  of 
the  General  Board  with  "wild-cat  schemes"  that  I  had  to 
give  it  up  for  the  time  being. 

My  scheme  comprehended  the  establishment  on  the 
Island  of  Luzon  of  four  aeronautic  stations,  each  of 
which  should  be  fitted  with  at  least  a  hundred  aeroplanes, 
with  the  proper  personnel  and  equipment.  I  proposed 
this  scheme  in  the  winter  of  1910  and  1911.  1  think  this 
was  the  first  proposal  for  using  aeroplanes  for  major 
operations. 

Of  course  aeroplanes  were  so  used,  and  with  great 
success,  in  the  great  war,  and  I  have  always  thought  it 
unfortunate  that  my  recommendation  was  not  adopted 
by  the  board.  If  it  had  been  adopted  then,  Secretary 
Meyer  would  undoubtedly  have  backed  it,  and  with  it  the 
utilization  and  development  of  aeronautics;  and  recent 
history  might  have  been  different  from  what  it  has  been. 
In  fact,  it  would  have  been  different,  very  different;  so 
different,  that  the  United  States  would  have  entered  the 
great  war,  prepared  to  render  immediate  service  of  the 
most  important  kind  and  hasten  greatly  the  winning  of 
the  war. 

Throughout  my  cruise  in  the  Tennessee  I  had  had  my 
range-finder  on  the  forward  turret,  and  had  used  it  on 
all  occasions  when  practicable ;  but  the  engrossing  nature 
of  my  duties  had  prevented  me  from  paying  much  atten 
tion  to  it,  especially  at  target-practice.  I  had  become 
more  and  more  convinced,  however,  of  the  excellence  of 
the  scheme  which  I  had  patented  of  having  a  "combined 
range-finder  and  turret,"  and  had  determined  to  take  up 
the  plan  seriously  as  soon  as  I  should  get  on  shore  again. 
I  saw,  however,  that  in  order  to  get  the  best  results,  I 
should  have  to  make  some  changes  in  mechanical  de- 


482     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

tails,  and  possibly  to  reconstruct  the  actual  instrument. 
Imagine  my  feelings  when  I  found  out  as  soon  as  I  took 
up  my  duties  on  shore  that  the  fire-control  board  had 
recommended  that  a  turret  range-finder  be  built  into  one 
of  the  turrets  of  the  New  York,  which  wa»s  then  -about 
half-way  finished,  and  that  later  battle-ships  also  should 
be  fitted  with  turret  range-finders  in  case  the  one  in  the 
New  York  proved  to  be  a  success !  It  did  prove  to  be  a 
success,  and  all  battle-ships  constructed  since  then  have 
been  fitted  with  turret  range-finders.  Besides  recom 
mending  the  adoption  of  the  turret  range-finder,  the 
board  also  recommended  the  adoption  of  the  plotting  sys 
tem  which  I  had  suggested  in  my  essay,  called  '  *  Courage 
and  Prudence,"  three  years  before. 

This  made  me  feel  that  I  had  not  lived  in  vain,  for 
two  important  inventions  of  mine  had  just  been  adopted. 
So,  though  my  humble  name  was  not  mentioned  in  con 
nection  with  either  of  them,  and  though  my  pioneer  ex 
periments  with  one  of  them  had  cost  me  more  than  six 
thousand  dollars,  I  was  content. 

I  had  also  made  up  my  mind  to  make  a  new  and  en 
larged  horizometer  as  soon  as  I  should  get  on  shore. 
While  making  the  passage  frcfm  Bremerton  to  Hampton 
Roads,  I  made  a  careful  design  of  an  instrument,  and 
shortly  after  my  arrival  in  Washington  I  engaged  the 
John  A.  Brashear  Company  of  Pittsburgh  to  construct 
it.  They  made  a  very  handsome  instrument,  but  my  ex 
periments  with  it  were  not  completed  when  I  went  to  sea 
in  October  the  following  year.  So  I  took  it  with  me  to 
the  Washington  when  the  Washington  became  my  flag 
ship. 

But  the  main  occupation  of  my  leisure  hours  on  the 
long  sea-trip  on  the  Tennessee  was  pondering  on  the 
theory  which  I  had  conceived,  that  navies  and  armies 
are  merely  applications  and  developments  of  savage 
weapons,  of  which  the  earliest  was  the  club.  I  had  to 
work  entirely  under  my  own  guidance,  for  I  found  my- 


AERONAUTICS  AND  NAVAL  POWER   483 

self  in  a  field  that  seemed  entirely  new.  I  had  not 
finished  my  endeavor  to  express  my  theory  in  an  essay, 
when  I  reached  Hampton  Roads,  but  I  continued  to 
work  on  it  during  the  autumn.  I  did  not  succeed  as 
well  as  I  had  hoped,  but  I  finally  produced  a  fairly 
coherent  essay,  which  I  called  " Naval  Power/'  When 
I  finally  stopped  work  on  it,  it  was  not  because  I 
was  quite  satisfied,  but  because  the  competition  in  which 
I  desired  to  enter  it  closed  on  December  31.  When  I 
sent  it  in,  I  realized  that  I  was  making  an  attempt  that 
was  rather  dangerous  for  a  member  of  the  General  Board 
to  make,  because  it  was  not  altogether  orthodox.  I  real 
ized,  however,  that  I  could  not  justly  be  accused  of  trying 
to  spread  a  doctrine  which  had  been  disapproved,  for 
the  simple  reason  that  the  doctrine  I  was  suggesting 
was  entirely  new. 

The  essay  began  by  pointing  out  how  much  influence 
Mahan's  books  had  had  in  inducing  nations  to  enlarge 
their  navies ;  but  showed  that  the  sea  power  which  Mahan 
wrote  about  was  not  really  sea  power,  but  naval  power, 
and  that  the  effect  of  a  merchant  marine  was  not  to 
increase  the  power  of  a  navy  except  in  the  way  in  which 
all  sources  of  wealth  in  a  nation  increased  it ;  but  to  act 
primarily  as  a  responsibility,  and  therefore  a  handicap. 
I  showed  also  that,  while  the  idea  in  most  people's  minds 
of  naval  power  is  extremely  vague,  and,  in  fact,  that 
" naval  power"  exists  only  as  a  phrase  in  most  men's 
consciousness,  yet  that  nevertheless  naval  power  was  a 
distinct  and  tangible  thing,  because  it  was  merely  me 
chanical  power.  I  showed  also  the  practical  value  of 
realizing  that  it  was  mechanical  power,  because  that  real 
ization  made  the  subject  a  concrete  subject  instead  of  an 
abstract  subject,  and  pointed  out  a  clear  line  along  which 
to  work  when  endeavoring  to  improve  our  navy. 

I  showed  also  that  naval  power  had  two  attributes 
which  mechanical  power  always  requires  for  its  proper 
management,  and  which  I  called  ''controllability  and  di- 


484     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

rectability. "  If  this  be  granted,  the  analogy  between  a 
fleet  and  the  club  wielded  by  Cain,  or  by  any  other  sav 
age,  stands  out  clear. 

Proceeding  on  the  basis  that  armies  and  navies  are 
effective  because  they  exert  mechanical  power,  I  showed 
that  a  navy  must  be  more  powerful  than  an  army,  be 
cause  the-  floating  properties  of  water  make  it  possible  to 
move  larger  masses  over  water  than  can  be  moved  over 
land.  Figuring  out  the  mechanical  power  of  a  ship  and 
of  an  army  in  terms  of  the  masses  moved  and  the  velocity 
with  which  they  are  moved,  I  showed  that  a  battle-ship 
like  the  Arkansas  was  more  powerful  than  an  army  of  six 
hundred  thousand  men. 

After  discussing  the  nature  of  naval  power,  my  essay 
discussed  the  primary  use  of  a  navy.  My  idea  was  to 
point  out  that,  in  order  to  defend  the  United  States,  it 
would  not  be  sufficient  to  defend  her  from  absolute  in 
vasion,  because  it  was  necessary  to  defend  it  from  block 
ade  as  well.  The  essay  pointed  out  that  the  primary  use 
of  the  navy  is  to  defend  our  great  sea-ports  from  block 
ade;  and  also  that  the  injury  which  a  blockade  could  in 
flict  on  the  United  States  was  very  great  indeed.  The 
reason  why  it  could  inflict  great  injury  was  that  the 
United  States  was  not  primarily  an  agricultural  country, 
but  an  industrial  country,  the  whole  system  of  which 
had  become  highly  complicated,  and  every  part  of  which 
depended  on  every  other  part.  Concerning  the  interde 
pendence  of  parts,  one  paragraph  read: 

The  organization  for  effecting  this  is  so  excellent  and  so 
wonderful,  that  it  is  like  a  machine.  In  fact  it  is  a  machine, 
and  with  all  the  faults  of  a  machine.  Now  one  of  the  faults 
of  a  machine,  a  fault  which  increases  in  importance  with  the 
complexity  of  the  machine,  is  the  enormous  disturbance  which 
may  be  produced  by  a  cause  seemingly  trivial. 

The  tremendous  disturbance  which  would  be  produced 
by  a  blockade  of  our  coast  was  then  analyzed  and  de 
scribed,  and  it  was  pointed  out  that  a  great  part  of  the 


AERONAUTICS  AND  NAVAL  POWER      485 

effect  would  be  caused  simply  by  the  suddenness  of  the 
change  which  would  be  brought  about.  One  paragraph 
read: 

The  sudden  stoppage  of  our  sea  trade,  including  our  coast 
ing  trade,  by  even  a  partial  blockade  of  our  ports,  would  change 
practically  all  the  conditions  under  which  we  live.  There  is 
hardly  a  single  organization  in  the  country  which  would  not  be 
affected  by  it. 

Another  paragraph  read: 

It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  the  blockading  of  the  prin 
cipal  ports  of  any  purely  commercial  country  would  be  a  dis 
aster  so  great  that  there  could  not  be  a  greater  one,  except 
actual  invasion. 

The  essay  then  pointed  out  that  the  most  effective 
single  agency  that  saved  the  Union  in  our  Civil  War  was 
not  the  army,  but  the  navy;  or,  more  strictly  speaking, 
the  navy's  blockade  of  the  Southern  coast,  which  made 
it  impossible  for  the  Confederacy  to  keep  its  army  ade 
quately  armed,  provisioned  and  equipped. 

The  essay  then  proceeded  to  point  out  the  danger  of 
having  our  navy  drop  behind  the  navies  of  other  great 
countries,  not  only  because  a  powerful  navy  is  a  de 
fense  in  war,  but  because  it  is  a  preventive  of  war. 
One  sentence  ran,  "  Other  factors  being  equal,  the  great 
est  probability  of  war  is  between  two  countries  of  which 
one  is  the  more  wealthy  and  the  other  the  more  power 
ful."  Another  sentence  ran,  "The  most  pregnant  cause 
of  war  is  the  combination  of  conflicting  interests  with 
disparity  in  power." 

Another  sentence  read: 

We  must  realize  that  it  is  not  enough  to  consider  the  situa 
tion  as  it  is  now;  but  it  is  necessary  to  look  at  least  ten  years 
ahead;  because  it  will  take  the  United  States  that  length  of 
time  to  prepare  a  navy  powerful  enough  to  fight  our  possible 
foes  with  reasonable  assurance  of  success. 


486     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Of  course,  this  did  not  mean  that  it  would  require  ten 
years  to  build  the  ships,  and  other  material.  That  would 
be  a  manufacturing  job  which  could,  if  necessary,  be  ac 
complished  in  perhaps  a  quarter  of  the  time.  It  meant 
that  it  would  take  ten  years  at  least  to  produce  a  navy 
which  not  only  was  large  enough  materially,  but  which 
had  within  itself  the  means  for  handling  itself  skilfully. 
I  knew,  of  course,  as  a  naval  officer,  that  the  most  difficult 
problem  before  a  navy  is  not  material,  but  mental  and 
spiritual. 

Ships  and  guns  no  more  make  a  navy  than  bones  and 
muscles  make  a  man.  The  difficult  part  about  making  a 
good  navy  is  not  to  make  its  ships  and  guns,  any  more 
than  the  difficult  part  about  making  a  good  man  is  to  make 
his  bones  and  muscles.  Furthermore,  the  larger  a  navy 
becomes,  and  the  more  highly  its  various  units  are  spe 
cialized,  the  more  difficult  becomes  the  problem  of 
handling  it  skilfully.  A  navy  is  merely  a  development 
of  the  club.  Cain  could  learn  to  use  his  club  skilfully 
in  a  very  short  time.  The  spear  that  followed  the  club, 
and  the  bow  and  arrow  that  followed  the  spear,  and  all 
the  weapons  that  have  been  successfully  developed  as 
civilization  has  advanced,  have  become  increasingly  diffi 
cult,  not  to  handle,  but  to  handle  with  skill. 

It  may  be  pointed  out  here  that  the  more  highly  de 
veloped  instruments  have  become,  the  easier  it  often  is 
to  handle  them,  but  the  more  difficult  to  handle  them  with 
skill.  It  is  easier  to  actuate  the  most  elaborate  pipe- 
organ,  for  instance,  than  it  is  to  actuate  a  flute,  but  it 
is  more  difficult  to  handle  it  with  skill.  The  ease  with 
which  large  and  highly  efficient  instruments  like,  say,  a 
navy  can  be  handled,  has  misled  many  people  into  sup 
posing  that  it  is  easy  to  handle  them  with  skill ;  whereas 
the  contrary  is  the  case. 

It  is  easier  to  handle  a  navy  than  a  club,  because  one 
has  simply  to  give  orders;  but  it  is  more  difficult  to  handle 
a  navy  skilfully  than  it  is  to  handle  a  club  skilfully. 

The  essay  was  then  devoted  to  showing  that  the  neces- 


AERONAUTICS  AND  NAVAL  POWER       487 

sity  of  naval  power  to  a  country  like  the  United  States 
would  increase  as  her  trade  increased,  and  that  the  de 
velopment  of  mechanism  was  going  to  bring  about  a 
world-wide  race  for  wealth,  which  would  bring  about 
world-wide  causes  of  friction  and  possible  war.  It 
pointed  out  the  inability  of  any  kind  of  schemes  of  arbi 
tration  to  prevent  war  forever,  and  showed  that,  when 
war  finally  did  come  to  a  country,  the  difference  between 
prosperity  and  disaster  would  rest  wholly  on  the  out 
come  of  the  war.  One  paragraph  read : 

This  does  not  mean  that  the  United  States  ought,  as  a  matter 
either  of  ethics  or  of  policy,  to  build  a  great  navy,  in  order  to 
take  unjust  advantage  of  weaker  nations ;  but  it  does  mean  that 
she  ought  to  build  a  navy  great  enough  to  save  her  from  being 
shorn  of  her  wealth  and  glory  by  simple  force,  as  France  was 
shorn  in  1871. 

The  essay  then  combatted  the  theory  that  a  great  navy 
was  not  needed  for  the  United  States,  and  that  it  was 
needed  for  countries  like  Great  Britain  only  to  prevent 
them  from  starving.  It  pointed  out  that,  while  it  was 
true  that  Great  Britain  did  need  a  navy  to  prevent  the 
starvation  of  her  people  in  case  of  war,  yet  the  inference 
usually  drawn  was  fallacious ;  the  inference  that,  if  Great 
Britain  were  not  situated  as  she  is,  she  would  not  have 
so  great  a  navy.  Another  paragraph  read  as  follows : 

The  main  reason  for  Great  Britain's  having  a  powerful  navy 
applies  with  exact  equality  to  the  United  States.  Now  that 
Great  Britain  has  proved  how  great  a  navy  is  best  for  her,  we 
can  see  at  once  how  great  a  navy  is  best  for  us.  That  is, — since 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States  are  the  wealthiest  countries 
in  the  world,  and  since  the  probability  of  war  between  any  two 
countries  is  least  when  their  navies  are  equal  in  power,  the 
maximum  good  would  be  attained  by  making  the  United  States 
navy  exactly  equal  to  the  British  navy. 

I  think  that  this  was  the  first  declaration  ever  published 
of  a  doctrine  that  now  has  many  advocates. 

In  the  middle  of  February  the  Naval  Institute  an- 


488     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

nounced  that  my  essay  had  received  "honorable  men 
tion."  The  first  prize  went  to  a  paymaster  for  an  essay 
on  "Navy  Yard  Economy." 

My  essay  attracted  almost  no  attention  whatever, 
though  it  was  copied  and  translated  in  some  foreign 
service  magazines.  Most  officers  whom  I  met  seemed 
inclined  to  smile  at  it,  and  not  to  take  it  very  seriously, 
especially  the  mechanical  analogy.  One  part  that  I  had 
feared  might  arouse  the  disapproval  of  the  General 
Board — the  part  saying  that  the  primary  use  of  the  navy 
was  to  prevent  blockade — was  accepted  without  much 
comment. 

Five  years  later  Mr.  Waldemar  Kaempffert,  editor  of 
the  Popular  Science  Monthly,  asked  me  to  rewrite  that 
part  of  my  essay  which  pointed  out  the  superior  power 
of  navies  as  compared  with  armies,  bringing  the  figures 
up  to  date,  and  to  contribute  it  to  his  magazine,  as  he 
wished  to  call  attention  to  the  desirability  of  building  up 
our  navy.  With  the  consent  of  the  Naval  Institute  I 
did  this.  The  number  for  October,  1915,  of  the  Popular 
Science  Monthly  published  this  article  very  prominently, 
headed  it  in  large  type,  "If  Battleships  Ran  on  Land," 
and  illustrated  it  with  a  full-page  picture  showing  a  bat 
tle-ship  running  on  wheels  over  New  York  and  knocking 
down  the  buildings.  One  paragraph  ran  as  follows : 

Inherent  Power  of  a  Battleship. — Possibly  the  declaration  may 
be  accepted  now  that  a  battleship  of  30,000  tons,  such  as  the 
navies  are  building  now,  with,  say,  twelve  14-inch  guns,  is  a 
greater  example  of  power,  under  absolute  direction  and  con 
trol,  than  anything  else  existing;  and  that  the  main  reason  is 
the  concentration  of  a  tremendous  amount  of  mechanical  energy 
in  a  very  small  space,  all  made  available  by  certain  properties 
of  water.  Nothing  like  a  ship  can  be  made  to  run  on  shore; 
but  if  an  automobile  could  be  constructed,  carrying  twelve  14- 
inch  guns,  twenty-two  5-inch  guns,  and  four  torpedo-tubes,  of 
the  size  of  the  Pennsylvania,  and  with  her  armor,  able  to  run 
over  the  land  in  any  direction  at  20  knots,  propelled  by  engines 
of  31,000  horse-power,  it  could  whip  an  army  of  a  million  men 
just  as  quickly  as  it  could  get  hold  of  its  component  parts.  Such 


AERONAUTICS  AND  NAVAL  POWER      489 

a  machine  could  start  at  one  end  of  an  army  and  go  through 
to  the  other,  like  a  mowing-machine  through  a  field  of  wheat; 
and  knock  down  all  the  buildings  in  New  York  afterward,  smash 
all  the  cars,  break  down  all  the  bridges,  and  sink  all  the  ship 
ping. 

This  article  attracted  considerable  attention  in  Eng 
land  from  the  military  papers  and  others.  The  British 
" tanks,"  or  "land  battle-ships,"  appeared  in  some 
what  less  than  a  year  afterward. 

Shortly  after  I  arrived  in  Washington,  and  while  I  was 
finishing  my  essay,  Captain  Dion  Williams  of  the  Marine 
Corps  told  me  that  he  had  narrated  many  times  the  story 
of  my  picking  up  a  man  at  sea  in  the  Minneapolis,  but 
that  nobody  would  believe  it ;  and  he  said  he  wished  that 
I  would  write  something  verifying  the  story.  So  I  wrote 
a  short  article  describing  it,  which  I  called,  "An  Un 
precedented  Rescue,"  and  the  Naval  Institute  published 
it  six  months  before  it  published  my  essay.  The  story 
aroused  the  greatest  interest  everywhere,  and  was  read 
by  probably  a  thousand  times  more  people  than  read  the 
essay.  I  took  one  day  to  write  the  story,  and  ten  months 
to  write  the  essay. 

In  the  spring  of  1911,  seeing  that  I  would  probably  be 
promoted  to  rear-admiral  during  the  coming  summer,  I 
made  official  application  to  be  ordered  to  take  command 
of  a  division  in  the  fleet  as  soon  as  the  first  vacancy  should 
occur. 

Sometime  in  May  I  was  asked  by  the  Alumni  Associa 
tion  of  the  Naval  Academy  to  deliver  the  principal  speech 
at  the  annual  dinner  in  June  in  reply  to  the  toast,  ' '  The 
Navy." 

I  accepted  the  invitation  with  pleasure,  because  it  gave 
me  an  opportunity  to  point  out  some  things  about  the 
navy  that  were  sometimes  overlooked.  One  paragraph 
in  my  address  was  as  follows : 

Navies  preserve  the  peace,  not  among  individuals,  but  among 
the  nations;  and  on  board  of  their  own  ships  they  set  the  best 


490     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

example  of  peaceful  living.  Peace  is  the  absence  of  strife ;  and 
how  can  there  -be  much  strife  on  board  a  ship  of  war,  where 
Law  and  Justice  reign  together,  where  no  opportunity  for  com 
mercial  fraud  or  oppression  can  exist,  where  the  daily  life  is 
arduous  and  healthful,  where  every  one's  status  is  defined,  and 
every  one's  rights  respected? 

The  intention  of  this  paragraph  was  to  point  out  that 
the  accusations  which  politicians  were  constantly  mak 
ing  against  armies  and  navies,  that  the  military  life 
(militarism)  is  an  instrument  of  oppression  and  a  cause 
of  misery,  are  absolutely  false.  The  two  last  paragraphs 
were  as  follows: 

How  clear  it  is  that  the  tremendous  progress  in  civiliza 
tion  which  steam  and  electricity  brought  to  Europe  and 
America,  is  now  spreading  rapidly  over  all  the  lands  and  oceans ; 
how  clear  that  countries  now  ignored  will  soon  demand  a  hear 
ing;  how  clear  that  the  desirable  portions  of  the  earth  are  very 
unequally  divided  among  the  nations,  as  regards  both  possession 
and  control;  that  Germany  is  not  content  with  only  a  million 
square  miles  and  Japan  with  only  two  hundred  thousand,  when 
G  reat  Britain  has  more  than  eleven  million ;  how  clear  that 
Germany  and  Japan  and  China  are  gathering  strength  to-  burst 
their  bonds;  how  clear  that  the  problem  of  living  peacefully 
together  has  been  solved  on  only  a  microscopic  scale;  how  clear 
that  the  struggles  between  individuals,  tribes  and  nations  must 
still  go  on,  but  on  wider  fields;  how  clear  that  wars  between 
small  states  are  soon  to  be  supplanted  by  wars  between  vast 
races. 

We,  the  people  of  the  United  States,  must  realize  all  this. 
We  must  refuse  to  listen  to  false  prophets  who  prophesy  smooth 
things  proved  impossible  by  history.  We  must  not  forget,  in 
the  immediate  family  of  kindred  countries,  that  many  discon 
tented  nations  and  many  alien  races  are  around  us.  We  must 
look  to  the  future  of  all  the  world,  and  not  to  only  a  little  part ; 
we  must  hold  fast  to  the  ideals  that  made  this  country  great; 
we  must  keep  alive  our  military  spirit.  If  we  do  not,  we  shall 
lose  everything  for  which  our  fathers  fought,  and  take  our  place 
among  the  degenerate  nations  of  the  earth. 


AERONAUTICS  AND  NAVAL  POWER       491 

I  went  that  summer  with  the  General  Board  to  the 
war  college  at  Newport,  but  lived  at  the  Bay  View  Hotel 
in  Jamestown,  opposite.  In  the  early  part  of  August 
I  was  ordered  for  examination  for  promotion.  At  this 
time  there  were  only  two  men  left  in  my  class  of  thirty, 
Bowyer  and  I,  and  Bowyer  was  in  such  bad  health  that  it 
was  sure  that  he  could  not  be  promoted.  I  was  so  for 
tunate  to  pass  my  examination  without  difficulty.  After  I 
had  passed  it,  I  felt  a  profound  sense  of  gratitude  and 
humility,  with  a  curious  mixture  of  incredulity,  that  of  all 
the  thirty  men  who  stood  up  on  graduation  day  thirty- 
seven  years  before,  I,  who  was  the  slightest  man  in  all 
the  class,  and  whose  performance  during  the  final  year 
at  the  academy  had  been  most  unofficer-like,  should  be 
the  only  one  to  become  a  rear-admiral. 

I  returned  to  Newport  and  to  my  pleasant  quarters  at 
the  Bay  View  Hotel.  The  following  evening,  when  I  went 
down  to  the  dining-room,  I  found  the  entire  population 
of  the  hotel  waiting  for  me  in  the  hall  outside.  I  was 
made  to  feel  quite  like  a  hero  for  about  five  minutes. 

As  Rear-Admiral  Wainwright,  the  President  of  the 
United  States  Naval  Institute,  was  to  retire  in  December, 
and  it  was  known  that  Rear-Admiral  Vreeland  was  to 
succeed  him  as  aid  for  operations,  there  was  a  movement 
started  in  Washington  to  get  Vreeland  elected  as  presi 
dent  of  the  institute  at  the  annual  election  in  October,  and 
I  joined  in  the  movement.  When  the  result  of  the  elec 
tion  was  announced,  I  read  in  the  Washington  Post  on 
October  14  that  I  had  been  elected!  I  was  more  than 
surprised,  for  I  had  had  no  expectation  of  receiving  any 
such  honor,  and  nobody  had  intimated  to  me  that  I  was 
even  being  thought  of  for  the  office.  Nevertheless,  I  was 
delighted. 

About  the  first  of  October  I  received  my  coveted  orders 
to  take  command  of  a  division  in  the  fleet.  At  eleven 
o'clock  on  October  21,  1911,  I  stood  on  the  quarter-deck 
of  the  U.  8.  S.  Washington  and  read  my  orders  to  assume 
command  of  the  fifth  division.  Then  my  two-starred  flag 


492     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

was  broken  at  the  masthead,  and  the  guns  of  the  ships  in 
the  harbor  fired  thirteen-gun  salutes. 

As  I  descended  to  the  cabin  from  the  deck,  I  found 
myself  repeating  the  translation  of  a  sentence  I  had  read 
in  some  paper  written  by  some  Frenchman,  "To  most 
naval  officers  the  stars  of  an  admiral  are  as  unattainable 
as  the  stars  of  the  sky." 


CHAPTER  XXXII 

COMMANDING   THE   FIFTH   DIVISION 

MY  division  consisted  of  the  Washington,  Tennessee, 
North  Carolina,  and  Montana,  the  same  ships  that 
Admiral  Staunton  had  commanded,  except  that  the 
Washington  had  taken  the  place  of  the  South  Dakota. 
Almost  immediately  after  assuming  command,  I  had  to 
take  my  division  to  New  York  and  to  join  the  North 
Atlantic  Fleet,  under  Rear- Admiral  Osterhaus,  in  the  re 
view  which  was  held  during  the  last  few  days  of  October 
in  the  Hudson  River.  The  review  made  a  display  nine 
miles  long,  and  was  said  to  be  a  spectacle  that  had  been 
exceeded  only  by  the  International  Armada,  which  had 
been  recently  assembled  in  Great  Britain  to  celebrate  the 
coronation  of  King  George  V.  The  fleet  aroused  tre 
mendous  attention  not  only  from  the  people  in  New  York, 
but  from  the  press  of  the  entire  country,  and  the  news 
papers  quoted  liberally  from  my  essay  on  naval  power 
in  order  to  impress  the  public  with  the  enormous  amount 
of  power  of  which  the  pageant  was  an  illustration. 

As  commander  of  a  division,  I  was  allowed  a  flag-lieu 
tenant  and  a  flag-secretary,  in  addition  to  a  certain  cleri 
cal  force.  I  selected  as  flag-lieutenant,  Lieutenant  Frank 
Russell,  who  had  been  my  range-finder  midshipman  in  the 
Tennessee;  and  I  selected  as  flag-secretary,  Lieutenant 
C.  C.  Gill.  It  had  been  the  custom  of  flag-officers  to 
select  for  these  positions  handsome  young  bachelors  in 
order  to  enhance  the  beauty  of  ceremonial  occasions,  espe 
cially  those  of  a  social  kind;  but  I  selected  two  extremely 
staid  and  serious  married  men,  and  I  never  regretted 
my  selection.  Russell  and  Gill  did  extremely  efficient 
service  on  my  staff,  and  have  continued  to  do  efficient 
service  ever  since. 

After  the  review  in  New  York,  Osterhaus  took  the  fleet 

493 


494     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

to  Hampton  Roads,  and  thence  out  to  sea,  on  different  oc 
casions,  for  tactical  drills.  On  one  of  these  occasions  I 
had  to  send  a  ship  by  wireless  orders  to  a  position  some 
miles  distant  and  out  of  sight,  and  shortly  afterward  to 
call  her  back.  This  was  the  first  time  that  I  had  ever 
given  orders  by  wireless,  and  I  shall  never  forget  the 
almost  awe-struck  feeling  that  I  had,  when,  after  telling 
the  flag-lieutenant  to  call  the  North  Carolina  back,  she 
then  being  several  miles  beyond  the  horizon,  I  saw  the 
tops  of  her  masts  half  an  hour  afterward  appear  above 
the  horizon,  and  shortly  afterward  beheld  the  entire  ves 
sel,  with  white  foam  at  her  bow,  dashing  forward  to  re 
join  us. 

During  one  of  the  forenoon  drills  I  received  an  order 
to  proceed  to  Hampton  Roads  immediately  with  the 
Washington  and  North  Carolina,  and  get  ready  to  go  to 
San  Domingo,  taking  the  American  Minister  with  me  on 
board  the  Washington. 

I  left  the  column  at  once  with  my  two  ships,  and  was 
soon  at  anchor  on  a  beautiful  bright  afternoon  in  Hamp 
ton  Roads.  Minister  W.  W.  Russell  came  on  board 
shortly  afterward,  and  informed  me  that  he  had  been 
on  leave  in  Washington,  that  news  had  been  received  that 
the  President  of  San  Domingo  had  been  murdered  one 
afternoon  in  one  of  the  streets  of  San  Domingo,  that 
considerable  confusion  reigned  there,  and  that  he  had 
been  ordered  back  to  ascertain  and  report  the  condi 
tion  of  affairs  and  look  out  for  American  interests,  with, 
he  said  with  a  smile,  ''the  assistance  of  Admiral  Fiske." 

We  had  a  pleasant  trip  down,  and  I  found  Russell  a 
delightful  shipmate.  He  had  been  graduated  from  the 
naval  academy  a  few  years  after  me,  but  had  resigned 
from  the  navy  later  and  entered  the  diplomatic  service. 
He  had  spent  about  fourteen  years  since  then  in  Spanish 
American  countries,  and  had  consequently  become 
familiar  with  the  characteristics  of  Spanish-American 
people  and  with  the  beautiful  Spanish  language. 


495 

When  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Bahamas,  we  got  into 
a  considerable  gale,  and  I  received  a  wireless  telegraph 
from  a  merchant  steamer,  reporting  that  she  had  run 
ashore  in  a  dangerous  position,  and  asking  for  assistance. 
I  sent  the  North  Carolina  to  the  rescue,  a  duty  which  de 
tained  her  about  twenty-four  hours. 

We  arrived  at  San  Domingo  City  on  Sunday  soon 
after  noon,  and  Mr.  Russell  went  ashore  in  his  capacity 
as  American  Minister  soon  afterward.  He  remained 
away  most  of  the  afternoon,  and  when  he  returned  a 
little  before  sunset  he  told  me  that  the  condition  of  affairs 
on  shore  was  very  serious,  not  so  much  on  account  of 
the  local  conditions,  as  because  the  Government  and  the 
people  were  excited  over  news  that  had  been  received  to 
the  effect  that  a  very  prominent  San  Domingan  rebel 
named  Horatio  Vasquez,  then  in  exile  in  St.  Thomas,  was 
about  to  head  a  large  party,  and  invade  San  Domingo, 
where  he  had  many  secret  supporters. 

After  talking  the  matter  over  with  the  minister,  I  said 
that  perhaps  the  report  might  not  be  true,  and  that  un 
less  he  had  some  objection,  I  would  go  at  once  to  St. 
Thomas  and  find  out  what  were  the  facts,  adding  that, 
if  the  report  was  true,  I  might  be  able  to  bring  such 
pressure  to  bear  upon  the  governor  as  to  prevent  the 
sailing  of  any  hostile  expedition  from  St.  Thomas.  I 
added  that  I  expected  the  Wheeling  that  evening,  and 
that  I  thought  she  could  take  the  place  of  the  Washington 
during  the  few  days  of  my  absence. 

The  minister  said  that  he  had  no  objection  whatever; 
in  fact,  that  he  considered  it  a  very  good  idea.  So  the 
Washington  made  immediate  preparations  for  sea,  and 
when  the  Wheeling  came  in  late  that  evening,  I  explained 
the  situation  to  her  captain,  Commander  Brittain,  and 
started  for  St.  Thomas  about  midnight. 

The  next  forenoon  I  sent  a  wireless  message  to  the 
American  consul  in  St.  Thomas,  asking  him  to  arrange 
an  audience  for  me  with  the  governor  for  the  following 


496     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

morning,  and  also  to  arrange  a  meeting,  if  possible,  with 
Horatio  Vasquez. 

I  had  a  satisfactory  audience  with  the  governor  the 
following  forenoon,  in  which  I  described  the  disturbing 
effect  which  the  reported  activities  of  Vasquez  were  hav 
ing  on  the  people  in  San  Domingo,  and  I  pointed  out  that, 
as  San  Domingo  was  virtually  under  the  protectorate  of 
the  United  States,  the  permitting  of  a  hostile  expedition 
from  St.  Thomas  against  San  Domingo  would  be  almost 
the  same  thing  as  permitting  a  hostile  expedition  from 
St.  Thomas  against  the  United  States.  The  governor 
was  evidently  impressed  with  the  gravity  of  the  situa 
tion  as  I  described  it,  and  he  promised  to  call  on  me  that 
afternoon  at  three  o'clock  and  tell  me  then  what  meas 
ures  he  had  decided  on. 

I  then  went  with  the  consul  to  the  consulate,  accom 
panied  by  my  two  aids,  we  being,  of  course,  in  uniform. 
The  consul  told  me  that  he  had  communicated  with 
Vasquez,  and  had  asked  him  to  meet  me  at  the  consulate, 
but  that  he  was  not  at  all  sure  that  Vasquez  would  come. 
He  added  that  people  living  in  exile,  especially  Spanish- 
Americans  were  extremely  suspicious  of  everybody,  and 
that  this  was  not  surprising.  I  waited  for  an  hour,  but 
Vasquez  did  not  appear.  I  then  departed,  asking  the 
consul  to  tell  Vasquez  that  I  should  .be  glad  to  see  him  on 
board  the  Washington  that  afternoon,  and  take  any  mes 
sage  back  to  San  Domingo  that  he  might  wish.  The 
consul  told  me  that  he  would  deliver  the  message,  but  he 
felt  absolutely  sure  that  Vasquez  would  not  risk  his  safety 
on  board  the  Washington.  He  did  not. 

The  Governor  called  on  me  that  afternoon  and  gave  me 
the  most  emphatic  and  earnest  assurances  that  he  had 
had  a  careful  watch  set  on  Vasquez,  and  that  he  would 
prevent  him  from  setting  forth  on  any  hostile  expedition 
from  St.  Thomas. 

I  started  back  to  San  Domingo  that  evening,  and  ar 
rived  two  days  later.  On  the  morning  following  our  de 
parture  I  received  a  wireless  message  from  Vasquez,  say- 


COMMANDING  THE  FIFTH  DIVISION      497 

ing  that  he  regretted  that  he  had  not  seen  me,  and  adding, 
"I  am  for  peace. "  That  same  forenoon  I  sent  a  wire 
less  message  to  the  Wheeling,  stating  what  had  happened 
in  St.  Thomas,  and  directing  that  the  information  be 
transmitted  at  once  to  the  American  Minister. 

On  our  arrival  at  San  Domingo  I  found  that  this  in 
formation  had  been  transmitted  by  the  minister  to  the 
Government,  and  by  the  Government  to  the  people,  and 
that  a  condition  of  tranquillity  had  been  established  im 
mediately. 

I  reported  these  circumstances  to  the  Navy  Depart 
ment.  About  a  month  later  I  received  a  letter  in  reply, 
and  with  it  a  copy  of  a  letter  from  the  State  Department, 
which  read  as  follows: 

Department  of  State, 

Washington, 
December  22,  1911. 
The  Honorable 

The  Secretary  of  the  Navy. 
Sir: 

I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your  letter 
of  the  15th  instant,  enclosing  an  interesting  report  made  by  the 
Commander  of  the  Fifth  Division  of  the  U.  S.  Atlantic  fleet, 
concerning  affairs  in  the  Dominican  Republic. 

I  have  the  honor  to  thank  you  for  this  report,  and  to  re 
quest  that  an  expression  of  the  appreciation  of  this  Department 
may  be  conveyed  to  the  Commanding  Officer. 
I  have  the  honor  to  be,  Sir, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

P.  C.  KNOX,  Secretary  of  State. 
839.00/453 

After  a  stay  of  about  three  weeks,  affairs  in  San 
Domingo  reached  their  usual  stage  of  apparent,  but  un 
stable,  tranquillity,  and  the  Washington  and  North  Caro 
lina  were  relieved  by  two  gun-boats,  and  ordered  north 
to  Hampton  Roads.  On  arriving,  I  was  ordered  to  re 
port  to  the  Navy  Department,  to  confer  with  the  aid  of 
operations,  and  when  there  I  was  told  that  I  would  receive 


498     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

orders  shortly  to  take  my  division  to  Newport  to  report 
to  the  Commander-in-chief  and  take  part  in  a  fleet 
strategic  game. 

After  reporting  to  the  commander-in-chief,  and  receiv 
ing  my  instructions,  I  proceeded  to  Hampton  Roads  with 
my  division;  while  the  other  division  commanders  went 
to  other  ports,  to  get  ready  for  the  game.  My  division 
started  out  from  Hampton  Roads  on  the  afternoon  of 
the  third  of  January,  when  the  weather  was  as  beautiful 
as  one  ever  saw;  but  Captain  Peake,  who  had  been  pilot 
ing  in  those  waters  for  many  years,  told  me  he  saw 
certain  signs  in  the  air,  and  in  the  clouds,  which  indicated 
a  violent  northwest  gale. 

The  next  day  was  good,  but  with  an  increasing  north 
westerly  wind,  and  when  I  was  called  at  daybreak  the  fol 
lowing  morning,  with  the  report  that  "the  enemy"  had 
been  sighted,  I  found  that  the  northwesterly  gale  which 
the  pilot  had  predicted  was  blowing  with  great  violence. 
The  enemy  which  was  sighted  proved  to  be  the  Rhode 
Island.  Because  of  the  superior  speed  of  the  Washing 
ton,  and  the  fact  that  her  comparatively  sharp  bow  en 
abled  her  to  behave  better  in  the  heavy  seas  than  did  the 
Rhode  Island's  bluff  bow,  I  was  able  to  cut  off  the  Rhode 
Island  from  the  rest  of  her  force,  none  of  which  was  then 
in  sight. 

The  weather  kept  getting  worse  not  only  in  the  violence 
of  the  wind  and  the  roughness  of  the  sea,  but  in  rain  and 
fog.  I  did  not  see  any  of  the  other  enemy  ships  that 
day,  and  I  realized  from  the  condition  of  affairs  on  board 
the  Washington  that  it  would  not  be  practicable  to  carry 
out  the  operations  as  they  had  been  planned,  especially 
with  the  destroyers,  for  we  began  to  receive  very  dis 
turbing  accounts  of  them  by  wireless.  We  could  not  see 
the  sun,  and  therefore  no  vessel  could  ascertain  its  own 
position  accurately,  or  tell  the  direction  and  distance 
from  itself  of  any  other  vessel.  That  night  I  ran  the 
Washington  at  a  speed  of  thirteen  knots  in  an  endeavor 
to  find  Admiral  Howard.  A  most  uncomfortable  night  it 


COMMANDING  THE  FIFTH  DIVISION      499 

was  for  everybody,  though  we  had  no  anxiety  for  the 
safety  of  any  vessel  except  the  destroyers.  The  Wash 
ington,  however,  had  four  boats  badly  damaged,  and  sus 
tained  a  number  of  minor  injuries.  The  following  after 
noon  the  commander-in-chief,  in  view  of  the  wide  disper 
sion  of  the  vessels  and  the  uncertainty  of  their  positions, 
and  because  of  the  dangerous  condition  of  some  of  the 
destroyers,  was  forced  to  abandon  the  game  and  order  the 
ships  to  various  rendezvous. 

Our  rendezvous  was  just  north  of  Bermuda,  and  I  re 
member  a  wonderful  forenoon  we  had  there,  when  the 
sea  was  only  a  little  rough,  and  an  exhilarating  and  abat 
ing  northwest  breeze  was  blowing.  That  afternoon  the 
Washington  and  North  Carolina  started  for  Hampton 
Roads  by  order.  We  immediately  got  into  another  gale 
just  as  bad  as  the  preceding  one,  and  on  reaching  the 
neighborhood  of  Cape  Henry  I  had  to  anchor  my  two 
ships  on  the  southern  drill-ground  in  a  northeast  gale 
and  snow-storm  and  wait  for  the  weather  to  clear. 

On  the  following  day  we  were  able  to  go  into  Hampton 
Roads  and  anchor.  Other  vessels  came  in  soon,  includ 
ing  some  destroyers,  and  we  learned  then  that  no  de 
stroyer  had  been  lost,  although  some  had  been  badly 
damaged. 

I  was  ordered  to  report  in  person  at  the  Navy  De 
partment.  On  doing  so,  I  was  told  that  I  was  to  go  with 
the  Washington  and  North  Carolina  to  Key  West  to  take 
part  in  certain  ceremonies  there,  connected  with  the  com 
pletion  of  the  railroad  which  had  been  laid  on  bridges 
over  the  Florida  Keys  and  the  water  between  them.  I 
went  to  the  Hydrographic  Office  to  get  the  latest  informa 
tion  concerning  the  channels  and  harbor  of  Key  West, 
as  I  had  not  been  there  for  many  years.  I  had  become 
much  impressed  with  the  strategic  importance  of  Key 
West,  but  knew  that  that  importance  was  very  much  les 
sened  by  the  fact  that  the  channel  was  narrow  and  the 
bottom  was  hard  coral;  and  because  of  this,  large  ves 
sels  had  not  dared  to  enter  it.  I  knew  that  during  the 


500     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIRAL 

Spanish  War  all  the  large  ships  had  anchored  outside  in 
open  water.  In  talking  over  the  matter  with  the  hydro- 
grapher,  a  captain  in  the  navy,  I  told  him  that  I  thought 
it  would  be  a  very  good  thing  if  the  navy  could  use  Key 
West  Harbor,  and  that  I  thought  I  would  make  a  sys 
tematic  effort  when  there  to  find  out  if  it  could  not  be 
done.  The  hydrographer  said  that  he  would  be  very 
much  obliged  to  me  if  I  would  do  so,  but  he  advised  me 
to  be  very  careful,  because  the  bottom  was  very  hard 
and  full  of  hard  coral  lumps.  I  pointed  out  to  him  that 
the  chart  showed  that  there  was  enough  water  in  the 
channel  for  the  Washington  and  North  Carolina  to  go 
right  up  to  the  city,  and  I  said  that  I  was  thinking  of 
risking  the  attempt.  The  hydrographer  urged  me  very 
earnestly  not  to  make  the  attempt,  as  it  would  be  en 
tirely  too  dangerous. 

We  arrived  outside  the  harbor  of  Key  West  at  day 
break  on  January  21.  I  had  sent  a  word  to  the  com 
mandant  by  wireless  the  night  before,  telling  him  that  I 
should  arrive  on  the  following  morning,  and  asking  his 
advice  about  trying  to  enter  the  channel  with  my  two 
ships.  Shortly  after  arriving,  the  navy-yard  tug  came 
down  with  a  pilot  on  board,  who  said  that  the  command 
ant  had  told  him  to  tell  me  that  he  would  not  give  me 
any  advice  whatever  about  trying  to  enter  the  channel. 
My  ships  drew  twenty-eight  feet  of  water  each,  and  the 
pilot  told  me  that  the  deepest-draft  vessel  that  had  ever 
gone  up  the  channel  had  drawn  only  twenty-five  feet  and 
eight  inches.  After  some  conversation  with  the  pilot,  and 
realizing  what  a  fine  thing  it  would  be  if  I  could  prove 
that  Key  West  could  take  big-draft  ships,  I  decided  to 
try  to  take  the  Washington  up. 

So  leaving  the  North  Carolina  outside,  I  started  up 
the  channel,  going  as  slowly  as  the  Washington  could  go ; 
telling  the  navy-yard  tug  to  precede  the  Washington,  sta 
tioning  men  by  the  water-tight  doors,  and  taking  all  pre 
cautions  possible.  Although  a  very  nervous  man,  I  did 
not  feel  in  the  slightest  degree  nervous  on  this  occasion, 


COMMANDING  THE  FIFTH  DIVISION      501 

although  I  realized  that  if  any  undiscovered  coral-lump 
was  touched,  our  bottom  would  be  broken  in,  and  I  would 
be  immediately  relieved  of  my  command  and  disgraced. 
My  reasoning  was  that,  although  no  other  ship  drawing 
so  much  water  had  gone  up  there  before,  yet  it  was  virtu 
ally  impossible  for  a  channel  which  was  so  short  and  nar 
row,  and  which  was  used  so  much,  to  have  in  it  any  dan 
gers  that  had  not  been  discovered.  Whether  my  action 
was  justifiable  or  not,  I  am  not  sure.  I  think  that  it  was, 
because  of  the  great  good  that  would  result  (and  did  re 
sult)  from  proving  the  harbor  to  be  available  for  large 
ships,  and  because  of  the  comparatively  small  danger  ex 
cept  to  my  own  career. 

We  threaded  the  channel,  and  anchored  off  the  town 
in  perfect  safety,  much  to  the  delight  of  the  people  of  the 
town;  and  the  North  Carolina  followed.  Since  that  time 
Key  West  has  been  continually  used  by  large  vessels.  On 
the  morning  following  our  arrival  the  Key  West  Citizen 
published  a  report  of  our  arrival,  in  which  were  the  fol 
lowing  paragraphs : 

"The  Washington,  flag  ship,  and  the  North  Carolina  arrived 
yesterday  afternoon,  and  the  Birmingham  came  in  early  this 
morning.  The  arrival  of  these  big  fighting  craft  to  take  part 
in  the  celebration  is  of  the  greatest  importance  to  this  port; 
for  the  reason  that  the  two  cruisers,  North  Carolina  and  Wash 
ington,  draw  28  feet  of  water  each,  and  are  the  deepest  draught 
vessels  that  have  ever  been  brought  into  this  harbor. 

"Admiral  Fiske,  in  addition  to  bringing  his  ships  here  and 
adding  to  the  interest  of  the  celebration,  has  done  Key  West 
a  great  service  in  demonstrating  the  fact  that  deep  draught 
vessels  can  be  brought  into  the  inner  harbor  with  safety." 

After  a  brief  stay  here,  we  were  again  ordered  to 
Hampton  Eoads,  where  we  anchored  in  the  midst  of  a 
great  deal  of  floating  ice.  We  were  ordered  from  there 
to  the  Norfolk  Navy-yard,  to  have  certain  alterations 
made  in  the  cabins,  because  Secretary  Knox  was  about  to 
make  a  trip  in  the  Washington  to  Central  America.  I 


502     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAB-ADMIKAL 

was  given  permission  to  leave  the  ship  and  proceed  home 
until  such  time  as  the  Washington  should  return. 

When  I  arrived  home,  which  was  in  Washington,  I 
found  that  the  Fifth  Division  would  probably  be  broken 
up,  and  that  some  other  ships  would  be  put  out  of  com 
mission,  because  the  navy  was  beginning  to  feel  the  short 
age  of  men,  which  was  occasioned  by  a  rapid  increase  in 
the  number  of  ships  without  a  corresponding  increase  in 
the  number  of  men  for  manning  them. 

While  I  was  in  Washington  a  memorial  parade  took 
place  in  which  the  bones  of  more  than  sixty  men,  taken 
from  the  Maine,  were  buried  at  Arlington.  The  pre 
liminary  arrangements  for  the  ceremonies  provided  for 
the  detail  of  a  brigadier-general  to  take  command  of  the 
parade.  I  knew  that  this  was  probably  because  no  naval 
officers  of  high  rank  were  then  in  Washington  whose 
duties  would  permit  them  the  time  to  prepare  the  parade ; 
but  it  seemed  to  me  that  it  would  be  incongruous  to  have 
an  army  officer  command  a  parade  in  honor  of  the  burial 
of  navy  men.  So  I  went  to  Captain  Potts,  who  was  then 
aid  for  personnel,  and  volunteered  for  the  duty.  Potts 
accepted  my  offer  with  alacrity,  and  I  received  my  orders 
forthwith. 

I  found  that  my  command  numbered  about  2100  men ; 
of  these,  one  detachment  came  from  the  Birmingham,  one 
from  the  Dolphin,  one  from  the  Mayflower,  one  from  the 
receiving-ship  Franklin  at  Norfolk,  one  from  Washington 
Barracks,  one  from  Fort  Meyer,  and  one  from  the  Marine 
Barracks. 

The  parade  was  held  on  March  23, 1912.  The  forenoon 
was  bright  and  beautiful,  but  I  knew  enough  about 
weather  never  to  trust  it.  So  I  telephoned  to  the 
Weather  Bureau  at  eleven  o  'clock,  stating  who  I  was,  and 
asking  to  be  put  into  communication  with  the  principal 
forecaster.  Then  I  asked  the  forecaster  what  would  be 
the  weather  that  afternoon,  saying  that  I  had  to  pa 
rade  2100  men,  and  to  decide  at  once  whether  to  direct 
them  to  wear  overcoats  or  not.  The  forecaster  replied 


COMMANDING  THE  FIFTH  DIVISION      503 

that  the  weather  would  be  warm  and  bright,  with  a  light 
southwest  breeze.  So  I  sent  out  orders  not  to  wear  over 
coats. 

The  detachments  of  the  parade  and  the  various  func 
tionaries,  including  President  Taft,  assembled  at  the 
western  end  of  the  War,  Navy  and  State  Building  at  one 
o'clock.  The  weather  had  now  become  cold,  and  a  light 
drizzle  was  beginning.  At  the  same  time  the  speakers 
began,  and  the  clergyman  who  made  prayers.  The 
weather  got  colder  and  wetter,  and  the  speeches  and 
prayers  became  longer,  as  the  people  stood  there.  The 
speeches  and  prayers  were  over,  however,  by  two  o'clock, 
and  then  I  started  the  parade  for  Arlington,  leading  it 
myself.  By  this  time  rain  was  descending  heavily,  and 
the  weather  was  just  warm  enough  to  prevent  the  rain 
from  freezing.  The  march  to  Arlington  took  an  hour, 
and  so  did  the  impressive  ceremonies  there.  I  was  so 
fortunate  in  making  the  arrangements  that  no  hitch  what 
ever  of  any  kind  and  no  unforeseen  incident  occurred. 
The  result  was  that  the  ceremonies  there  were  completed 
in  an  hour.  By  this  time  everybody  was  very  cold  and 
very  wet. 

A  few  days  later  I  wrote  to  the  commanding  officers 
of  the  various  detachments  that  had  taken  part  in  the 
parade,  asking  how  many  men  had  been  sick  on  the  day 
following  their  exposure,  and  also  how  many  men  had 
been  seriously  sick. 

After  the  answers  had  all  come  in,  I  found,  to  my  sur 
prise,  that  no  men  had  been  seriously  sick  on  the  follow 
ing  day,  and  that  only  two  men  had  been  at  all  sick. 
These  results  were  so  remarkable  that  I  made  special 
reports  of  them  to  both  the  Navy  and  War  Departments. 

During  the  winter  of  1910  and  1911,  while  I  was  urg 
ing  the  establishment  of  an  aeroplane  service  in  the  Phil- 
lipine  Islands  for  use  against  transports  and  boats  in  an 
attempted  invasion,  I  had  pointed  out  that  if  the  aero 
planes  were  large  enough,  they  could  launch  torpedoes 
against  the  transports  and  even  against  the  battle-ships. 


504    FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

This  idea  was  not  seriously  considered  by  anybody, 
except  myself;  but  as  time  went  on,  and  I  saw  that 
aeroplanes  were  becoming  larger,  I  realized  that  the 
scheme  was  obviously  practicable.  The  idea  occurred 
to  me  of  patenting  it;  but  I  dismissed  that  idea  for  the 
reason  that  I  felt  sure  that  the  scheme  must  have  been 
proposed  before  and  probably  patented.  I  talked  about 
it  to  a  number  of  people,  among  others  Park  Benjamin, 
and  one  afternoon  in  Washington,  in  the  spring  of  1912, 
we  discussed  the  idea  of  patenting  this  scheme,  and  also 
another  scheme  I  had,  which  was  an  extension  of  my 
original  wireless-control  scheme.  The  idea  underlying 
this  was  that  the  aeroplane  might  supply  the  missing- 
link  needed  to  make  the  wireless-control  scheme  prac 
ticable,  because  the  one  great  obstacle  in  the  way  of  wire 
less  control  of  torpedoes  was  that  a  man  could  not  see 
them  very  far ;  and  it  seemed  to  me  that  an  observer  on 
an  aeroplane  could  accompany  the  torpedo  or  other  craft, 
and  send  signals  back  to  the  electric  transmitting  station 
by  wireless  to  steer  the  torpedo  to  the  right  or  the  left. 
A  better  plan,  however,  which  occurred  to  me  was  to 
have  a  transmitting  station  on  the  aeroplane  itself  and 
steer  the  torpedo  directly. 

I  gave  up  both  of  these  plans,  however,  in  favor  of 
the  plan  of  dropping  torpedoes  directly  from  aeroplanes. 
It  seemed  to  me  that  this  plan  would  be  better  even  if 
only  one  torpedo  were  to  be  used  in  any  undertaking, 
but  that  it  would  be  immeasurably  better  if  a  great  num 
ber  were  to  be  employed.  In  the  latter  case  it  seemed 
to  me  that  the  wireless  plan  was  impracticable. 

Mr.  Benjamin  agreed  with  me,  but  I  told  him  that  it 
looked  a  little  foolish  to  me  to  apply  for  a  patent  on  the 
scheme  of  launching  a  torpedo  from  aeroplane,  because 
I  felt  quite  sure  that  somebody  must  have  gotten  ahead 
of  me  on  so  obvious  a  line  of  work,  especially  as  I  had 
been  talking  about  it  to  everybody  for  more  than  a  year. 
Mr.  Benjamin  said  that  he  agreed  with  me  in  the  main; 
but  that  inventors  were  curious  people,  and  it  might  be 


COMMANDING  THE  FIFTH  DIVISION      505 

that  nobody  except  me  had  thought  about  this  particular 
plan.  He  added  that  ever  since  I  had  suggested  the  idea 
to  him,  about  a  year  before,  he  had  kept  track  of  aero 
nautical  patents,  and  he  was  quite  sure  that  nothing  like 
my  plan  had  been  patented.  I  told  Benjamin  that  I  was 
keeping  pretty  fair  track  myself  of  the  progress  of  aero 
nautics,  and  that  I  had  not  seen  any  suggestion  along  the 
line  of  my  scheme  in  any  aeronautical  paper,  foreign  or 
domestic.  I  remember  saying  to  him,  "I  have  invented 
not  only  a  new  weapon,  but  a  NEW  METHOD  OF  WARFARE.  ' ' 


Method  of  and  Apparatus  for  Delivering  Submarine  Torpedoes 

from  Airships. 
U.  S.  Patent  No.  1,032,394,  dated  July  16,  1912. 

So  I  asked  Benjamin  to  prepare  the  patent  applica 
tion.  He  did  so,  and  made  the  first  claims  so  broad  as 
to  cover  even  bomb-dropping,  in  order  that  the  answer 
which  he  got  from  the  Patent  Office  might  show  him  every 
thing  there  was  in  that  line.  The  Patent  Office  of  course 
rejected  the  claims  as  drawn.  Benjamin  made  out  new 
claims  forthwith  in  the  light  of  the  information  received. 

The  Patent  Office  granted  these  claims  at  once,  and 
gave  me  a  strong  and  basic  patent.  My  application  for 


506     FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

patent  was  dated  April  12,  1912.     The  patent  was  issued 
on  July  16,  1912. 

The  basic  character  of  the  patent,  and  the  fact  that  it 
covered  not  only  an  apparatus  but  a  method  are  shown 
by  the  claims  that  were  granted  by  the  Patent  Office. 

These  read: 

"  I  claim 

"1.  The  method  of  directing  and  delivering  the  attack  of  a  self-propelled 
submarine  torpedo  upon  a  floating  target,  which  consists,  first,  in  transport 
ing  said  torpedo  through  the  air  to  a  point  of  desired  proximity  to  said 
target ;  second,  training  said  torpedo  in  the  desired  direction ;  third,  starting 
the  propelling  mechanism  of  said  torpedo,  and  fourth,  releasing  said  torpedo 
to  fall  by  gravity  to  the  water. 

"2.  The  method  of  directing  and  delivering  the  attack  of  a  self-propelled 
submarine  torpedo  upon  a  floating  target,  which  consists,  first,  in  trans 
porting  said  torpedo  through  the  air  over  a  path  of  relatively  high  eleva 
tion  to  the  vicinity  of  said  target;  second,  swooping  downward  to  a  point 
of  relatively  low  elevation  and  training  said  torpedo  in  the  desired  direc 
tion;  third,  starting  the  propelling  mechanism  of  said  torpedo,  and  fourth, 
releasing  said  torpedo  to  fall  by  gravity  to  the  water. 

"3.  In  combination  with  an  air-ship,  a  torpedo  of  the  self-propelled  sub 
marine  type  having  an  externally-controllable  device  for  starting  the  pro 
pelling  mechanism  of  said  torpedo,  means  for  retaining  said  torpedo  below 
said  ship,  and,  on  said  ship,  means  for  operating  said  starting  device,  and 
means  for  releasing  said  retaining  means. 

"4.  In  combination  with  an  air-ship,  a  torpedo  of  the  self-propelled  sub 
marine  type  having  an  externally-controllable  device  for  starting  the  pro 
pelling  mechanism  of  said  torpedo,  means  for  retaining  said  torpedo  below 
said  ship,  and,  on  said  ship,  a  manually  controllable  lever  and  transmitting 
mechanism  actuated  by  said  lever,  first,  to  operate  said  starting  device,  and 
second,  to  release  said  retaining  means. 

"5.  In  combination  with  an  air-ship,  a  torpedo  of  the  self-propelled  sub 
marine  type  having  an  externally-controllable  device  for  starting  its  pro 
pelling  mechanism,  chocks  for  said  torpedo  below  said  ship,  a  strap  for 
retaining  said  torpedo  in  said  chocks,  a  latch  for  said  strap,  and,  on  said 
ship,  a  manually  controllable  lever  for  releasing  said  latch,  and  transmit 
ting  mechanism  actuated  by  said  lever,  for  operating  said  starting  device." 

By  this  time  I  was  quite  sure  that  the  Fifth  Division 
would  be  disbanded,  and  so  I  bestirred  myself  to  get 
command  of  another  division  in  the  fleet,  as  I  knew  that  a 
vacancy  would  soon  occur.  The  vacancy  did  occur, 
and  about  the  first  of  April  I  received  orders  to  com 
mand  the  Third  Division  of  the  fleet,  relieving  Howard, 
who  was  to  go  on  shore  duty. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII 

COMMANDING  THE   THIRD   AND   THE   FIRST   DIVISION. 
END   OF    SEA   CAREER 

SHORTLY  after  taking  command  of  the  third  divi 
sion,  I  assembled  the  third  and  fourth  divisions  at 
Provincetown,  Massachusetts,  by  order  of  the  com- 
mander-in-chief.  By  this  time  the  fleet  had  been  divided 
into  two  squadrons,  of  which  the  senior  divisional  com 
mander  had  command  of  the  first  squadron,  and  the  next 
senior  divisional  commander  had  command  of  the  sec 
ond  squadron,  the  commander-in-chief  being  relieved  of 
his  previous  duties  as  divisional  commander  and  per 
mitted  to  devote  his  entire  attention  to  the  fleet  as  a 
whole.  The  fleet  was  now  temporarily  separated  into 
two  parts,  the  first  squadron  being  based  on  Narragan- 
sett  Bay,  and  the  second  squadron  on  Provincetown. 

In  the  early  part  of  May  I  anchored  the  second  squad 
ron,  consisting  of  eight  battleships,  in  Salem  Harbor.  In 
the  late  afternoon  of  May  10,  the  orderly  at  my  cabin- 
door  reported  to  me  that  an  aeroplane  was  in  sight,  head 
ing  toward  the  squadron.  I  went  up  on  the  quarter-deck, 
and  saw  an  aeroplane  coming  rapidly  toward  my  flagship 
the  Georgia.  In  a  few  minutes  it  landed  on  the  water 
directly  astern.  I  saw  that  it  had  two  men  in  it,  and  I 
at  once  ordered  that  a  boat  be  sent  with  an  invitation  to 
the  aviators  to  come  on  board,  and  that  the  aeroplane 
be  allowed  to  ride  astern  of  the  Georgia,  like  a  boat. 
When  the  two  aviators  came  on  board,  I  asked  them  to 
come  aft  on  the  quarter-leek;  and  I  found  that  they 
were  Mr.  "W.  Starling  Burgess  and  Mr.  Phillips  Ward 
Page.  This  was  the  first  time  that  I  had  ever  seen  a 

507 


508     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

hydro-aeroplane,  and  I  was  delighted  with  the  speed 
at  which  it  had  come  and  the  evident  practicability  of 
handling  it. 

I  explained  my  admiration  to  Mr.  Burgess  with  so 
much  emphasis  that  he  kindly  invited  me  to  go  ashore 
and  take  dinner  with  him  and  Mrs.  Burgess.  I  accepted 
at  once,  thinking  that  he  would  take  me  in  his  aeroplane. 
Mr.  Page  went  down  to  the  aeroplane,  but  that  did  not  ex 
cite  my  suspicions  until  I  saw  him  sailing  away  with  it.  I 
expressed  my  disappointment  to  Mr.  Burgess,  and  he  an 
swered  that  he  had  not  supposed  that  I  wanted  to  go  in 
the  aeroplane;  in  fact,  that  the  possibility  had  not  oc 
curred  to  him. 

So  I  took  him  ashore  in  my  barge,  and  I  had  a  delight 
ful  dinner  with  a  delightful  family.  During  the  dinner  I 
made  as  many  hints  as  I  could  about  being  taken  up  in  an 
aeroplane,  but  without  success  for  some  time.  Finally 
Mr.  Burgess  said,  "Do  you  really  mean,  Admiral,  that 
you  would  like  to  go  up  in  an  aeroplane?"  I  said  that 
I  should,  and  it  was  soon  arranged  that  an  aeroplane 
would  be  alongside  the  Georgia  at  eight  o'clock  the  fol 
lowing  morning. 

I  said  nothing  about  this  to  anybody,  fearing  that  some 
one  might  try  to  dissuade  me ;  but  the  next  morning  the 
Boston  papers  had  an  account  of  the  incident,  and  a  state 
ment  that  I  was  going  to  fly  that  morning. 

The  next  morning  I  was  ready  and  waiting  a  little  be 
fore  eight,  with  my  barge  alongside  the  gangway.  At 
the  appointed  time  the  aeroplane  hove  in  sight,  and  I  got 
into  my  barge  and  shoved  off.  The  aeroplane  settled 
in  the  water  almost  immediately  afterward.  I  stepped  on 
board  of  it,  and  in  not  more  than  two  minutes  after  I  had 
left  the  cabin  I  was  skimming  the  surface  of  the  water  at 
tremendous  speed.  Half  a  minute  later  I  had  a  sensa 
tion  that  I  never  had  before  and  shall  never  have  again. 
No  person  who  has  not  had  the  sensation  can  imagine 
what  it  is  to  feel  himself  doing  a  thing  not  only  different 


FLIGHT  IN  AN  AEROPLANE  509 

from  anything  he  had  ever  done  before,  but  directly  con 
trary  to  all  the  beliefs  of  what  was  possible  that  he  had 
held  during  the  major  portion  of  his  life. 

I  cannot  say  that  the  feeling  was  pleasant,  because  it 
was  so  strange  and  so  brief  that  I  could  not  analyze  it. 
The  mere  speed  at  which  we  went  was  bewildering,  and 
as  we  rose  higher  and  higher  into  the  air,  and  the  view 
over  which  I  could  see  became  greater  and  greater,  I 
seemed  to  acquire  a  new  and  larger  view  of  life ;  and  I 
remember  having  a  curious  realization  that  things  in  this 
world  must  look  very  different  to  some  men  than  to 
others,  for  the  simple  reason  that  they  are  higher  above 
the  earthly  details  and  commoplaces  of  life,  can  see  a 
greater  number  of  things,  and  get  a  more  accurate  idea 
of  the  relations  of  one  thing  to  the  other.  Most  people 
can  see  only  a  few  things  close  at  hand,  and  these  things 
shut  out  the  view  of  other  things  that  are  often  more  im 
portant. 

My  reason  for  going  up,  however,  was  not  to  enjoy 
myself,  but  to  make  up  my  mind  as  to  whether  the  con 
ditions  on  board  an  aeroplane  were  such  as  would  permit 
the  offensive  use  of  bombs  that  I  had  suggested  for  the 
defence  of  the  Philippines,  and  also  to  see  if  my  scheme  of 
launching  automobile  torpedoes  from  aeroplanes  seemed 
practical.  I  desired  to  ascertain  from  personal  expe 
rience  whether  in  an  aeroplane  one  was  in  an  atmosphere 
of  confusion  and  noise  and  oscillation,  such  that  his 
mind  would  not  operate,  and  he  could  not  use  instru 
ments. 

To  my  delight,  I  found  a  condition  of  the  greatest  tran 
quillity  and  evenness.  The  only  confusing  element  was 
the  tremendous  noise  of  the  engine ;  but  as  that  was  uni 
form,  one  soon  became  accustomed  to  it.  The  aero 
plane  was  immeasurably  more  steady  than  a  destroyer 
or  even  a  ship,  careening  to  the  left  or  right  only  occasion 
ally,  and  with  a  smooth,  unjerky  motion.  At  one  time  we 
flew  over  a  column  of  boats  that  were  bringing  a  large 


510     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

party  of  men  off  from  shore,  and  I  said  to  myself  that 
with  a  few  bombs  I  could  prevent  any  boat  ever  getting 
to  its  ship. 

After  leaving  the  water,  we  ascended  to  only  about 
eight  hundred  feet ;  but  that  height  was  so  great  in  com 
parison  with  any  other  height  at  which  I  had  ever  been, 
that  we  did  not  seem  to  be  going  very  fast.  The  only 
time  that  I  got  a  sensation  of  great  speed  was  when  we 
flew  past  the  topmast  of  the  Georgia,  and  within  a  few 
feet  of  it. 

Mr.  Burgess  had  told  me  that  it  was  not  considered 
wise  for  a  man  to  stay  up  more  than  five  minutes  on  his 
first  trip.  So  Mr.  Page,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  ma 
chine  that  day,  soon  landed  me  alongside  of  the  Georgia. 

My  barge  was  in  readiness,  and  in  about  two  minutes 
more  I  was  again  in  my  cabin.  Looking  at  the  clock,  I 
saw  that  I  had  been  gone  from  the  cabin  exactly  fifteen 
minutes.  I  could  not  realize  this  at  first,  because  I  had 
flown  around  and  over  the  entire  harbor  and  town  of 
Salem ! 

I  had  gone  up  in  uniform,  so  as  to  make  my  flight  an 
official  matter,  even  in  the  matter  of  my  own  feelings.  I 
made  a  report  of  my  flight  to  the  Navy  Department  im 
mediately,  stated  that  I  thought  that  the  aeroplane  could 
be  made  a  very  important  naval  weapon,  and  recom 
mended  it  to  the  attention  of  the  department.  In  com 
menting  on  my  flight  not  long  afterward,  one  of  my 
friends  remarked  that  I  was  the  ''flightiest  admiral  in 
the  world." 

I  was  the  first  officer  of  a  rank  equal  to  mine  to  fly  in 
an  aeroplane  officially  and  in  uniform.  I  have  heard 
since  that  Rear-Admiral  Chester  U.  S.  N.  took  an  unoffi 
cial  flight  some  time  before  I  did. 

I  was  surprised  at  the  attention  which  was  given  to  my 
flight  by  the  public  press  in  this  country  and  abroad. 
Startling  headlines,  some  red  and  some  black,  orna 
mented  the  newspapers;  and  I  was  quoted  as  saying 
things  that  I  never  said  and  never  thought  of.  Some  of 


TELESCOPE  SIGHT  vs.  TURRET  511 

my  reputed  sayings  made  me  seem  a  little  ridiculous,  but 
I  did  not  mind  that,  because  I  thought  I  had  done  a  good 
thing,  and  because  I  knew  the  men  of  my  command 
thought  so,  from  the  cheers  which  they  had  sent  up  as  I 
flew  by  them  on  my  return. 

In  June,  1912, 1  published  an  article  in  the  Naval  Insti- 
stute,  called  "The  Relative  Importance  of  Turret  and 
Telescope  Sight." 

The  first  four  paragraphs  were  as  follows  : 

The  value  of  the  turret  is  recognized.  The  victory  of  the 
Monitor  over  the  Merrimac  was  so  opportune  and  dramatic,  and 
its  results  were  so  evident,  important  and  immediate,  that  the 
turret  was  at  once  proclaimed,  by  all  the  world,  to  be  one  of 
the  greatest  inventions  of  the.  age. 

The  telescope  sight,  on  the  other  hand,  made  its  obscure  little 
debut  on  a  small  gun-boat,  way  up  in  Bering  Sea ;  its  value  was 
not  realized  for  ten  years;  and  it  grew  so  slowly  into  use  that 
it  came  gradually  to  be  regarded  as  a  "matter  of  course." 
Though  adopted  now  by  every  civilized  navy  in  the  world,  it  has 
nevertheless  received  no  individual  recognition;  and  yet  there 
are  some  who  think  that  it  is  a  more  important  factor  in  naval 
warfare  than  the  turret. 

To  compare  the  relative  values  of  the  turret  and  the  telescope 
sight,  let  us  imagine  two  ships,  A  and  B,  meeting  on  the  ocean 
and  fighting;  A  having  open  sights  and  turrets,  and  B  having 
telescope  sights  and  no  turrets;  B's  guns  being  arranged  in 
broadside. 

Which  ship  would  win? 

The  essay  discussed  the  conditions  of  a  fight  between 
two  such  ships  according  to  the  principles  of  gunnery  and 
tactics,  and  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  battle-ship 
which  had  telescope  sights  and  no  turret  would  whip  the 
ship  which  had  turrets  and  no  telescope  sights,  and 
quickly. 

The  essay  then  discussed  an  attack  by  destroyers,  and 
also  by  light  cruisers,  against  the  two  supposititious  bat 
tle-ships,  and  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  ship  which 
had  telescope  sights  and  no  turret  would  have  more  than 


512     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

eight  times  the  chance  of  withstanding  the  attack  that 
a  ship  with  turrets  and  without  telescope  sights  would 
have.  It  pointed  out  also  that  a  battle-ship  without  tele 
scope  sights  would  have  a  very  poor  chance  of  escape 
from  an  attack  by  six  destroyers  even  in  the  daytime, 
whereas  a  battle-ship  with  telescope  sights  would  almost 
surely  beat  them  off. 
The  essay  closed  as  follows : 

Therefore,  it  is  possible  that,  were  it  not  for  the  naval 
telescope  sight,  the  'battleship,  including  the  turret,  might  have 
become  obsolete  before  now.  It  is  certain  that  the  battleships 
would  have  much  less  than  their  present  effectiveness  to  plead 
as  a  reason  for  their  existence;  that  they  would  fall  an  easier 
prey  to  the  torpedo;  and  that  we  should  have  had,  and  should 
still  have,  very  much  more  difficulty  in  getting  money  to  build 
them. 

The  turret  has  no  field  of  usefulness  in  torpedo  warfare,  and 
is  applicable  to  battleships  only.  The  naval  telescope  sight  has 
an  important  field  in  torpedo  warfare,  and  is  applicable  to  all 
kinds  of  vessels.  Over  the  whole  world  today,  there  is  hardly 
a  modern  gun  on  board  a  modern  vessel  that  is  not  fitted  with 
telescope  sights 

In  the  war  between  Japan  and  Russia,  the-  destruction  of  the 
Russian  fleet  at  Tsushima  was  so  complete  as  to  end  the  war. 
The  main  cause  of  its  destruction  was  that  the  Russian  gunnery 
was  less  accurate  than  the  Japanese.  The  more  accurate  gun 
nery  of  the  Japanese  secured  an  initial  advantage  in  the  begin 
ning  of  the  battle,  which  according  to  a  natural  law,  increased 
in  geometrical  ratio  as  the  battle  went  on,  and  became  overwhelm 
ing  in  a  few  minutes. 

It  has  been  stated  on  excellent  authority  that  the  Japanese 
guns  were  fitted  with  telescope  sights  in  good  order,  while  very 
few  of  the  Russian  ships  had  telescope  sights — and  that  the  tele 
scope  sights  which  were  fitted  were  not  in  good  order. 

If  this  be  true  (and  it  probably  is),  the  reason  for  the  sudden 
annihilation  of  the  Russian  fleet  stands  out  sharp  and  clear; 
and  we  see  that  the  naval  telescope  sight,  more  than  any  other 
one  thing,  was  the  cause  of  the  turning  of  the  tide  of  history 
in  the  direction  in  which  it  did  turn. 


TELESCOPE  SIGHT  vs.  TURRET  513 

I  have  been  informed  since  that  there  is  no  doubt  as  to 
the  existence  of  good  telescope  sights  in  the  Japanese 
fleet  and  their  non-existence  in  the  Russian  fleet. 

The  thing  which  prompted  me  to  write  this  article  was 
a  public  movement  then  going  on  for  putting  up  a  statue 
to  Ericsson.  I  felt  thoroughly  convinced  myself  that  the 
telescope  sight  had  been  a  greater  contribution  to  navies 
than  the  turret  had,  and  so  I  determined  to  say  so  as 
loudly  as  I  could.  I  expected  that  my  claims  would  be 
ridiculed,  at  least  by  some,  and  that  I  would  be  accused 
of  gross  exaggeration  at  the  least.  To  my  surprise,  al 
though  my  article  was  copied  here  and  there,  no  comment 
whatever  was  made  on  it  either  favorable  or  adverse.  At 
first  I  was  considerably  chagrined  about  this,  and  told  of 
my  chagrin  to  different  people.  They  all  told  me  that  I 
had  put  my  case  so  convincingly  that  there  wae  nothing 
further  to  be  said  about  it. 

About  the  first  of  June,  the  fleet  was  sent  South,  be 
cause  of  very  considerable  trouble  in  the  regions  of  Haiti 
and  San  Domingo.  Most  of  the  fleet  anchored  in  Key 
West  Harbor,  a  thing  that  pleased  me  greatly.  Matters 
were  smoothed  out  soon ;  so  that  most  of  the  ships  of  the 
fleet  were  able  to  go  North  in  a  few  weeks. 

During  my  stays  at  Key  West,  both  on  this  occasion 
and  on  the  previous  occasion,  when  I  had  been  in  the 
Washington,  I  was  able  to  carry  on  some  very  interesting 
experiments  with  new  forms  of  my  horizometer,  made  by 
the  Brashear  Company,  of  Pittsburgh.  None  of  the  re 
sults  achieved,  however,  were  good  enough  to  warrant  my 
submitting  the  instrument  to  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  for 
official  test.  The  great  difficulty  was  that,  though  I  con 
tinually  improved  the  instrument,  the  requirements  of 
naval  gunnery  increased  more  rapidly  than  my  improve 
ments  advanced. 

The  fleet  had  become  gradually  dispersed,  but  finally 
the  commander-in-chief  collected  it  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Narragansett  Bay.  My  division  was  the  last  to  join, 


514    FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

and  as  I  approached  the  fleet,  which  was  at  anchor,  my 
division  was  in  "natural  order";  that  is,  the  flag-ship 
was  leading. 

I  discovered,  however,  on  the  following  morning  that, 
due  to  the  way  in  which  the  ships  had  been  swinging  to 
the  tide,  the  other  divisions  had  been  in  inverted  order. 
The  result  was  that,  when  the  fleet  went  out  to  tactical 
drill  the  following  day,  my  division  was  inverted  when 
ever  the  other  divisions  were  steaming  in  natural  order, 
and  vice  versa.  While  making  a  maneuver,  the  com- 
mander-in-chief  signaled  to  me  by  the  general  signal- 
book,  "Your  division  is  inverted."  I  had  already  be 
come  aware  of  this,  but  I  saw  no  way  of  rectifying  the 
matter  while  the  fleet  was  going  through  tactical  evolu 
tions.  When  the  commander-in-chief  made  me  this  sig 
nal,  my  flag-lieutenant  and  I  searched  the  signal-book 
with  feverish  haste  to  find  a  signal  for  putting  the  divi 
sion  into  natural  order.  We  could  find  no  signal  in  the 
book.  At  the  end  of  the  manoeuver  the  other  divisions 
were  inverted,  and  mine  was  in  natural  order.  I  went 
through  an  agony  for  about  a  minute ;  then  suddenly  an 
inspiration  came  to  me.  We  were  going  at  sixteen  knots 
in  a  strong  wind  and  a  considerable  sea,  and  there  was 
that  atmosphere  of  tension  which  there  always  is  at  fleet 
tactical  drills,  while  these  enormous  masses  of  delicate 
machines  are  rushing  over  the  ocean,  with  the  danger 
ever  present  of  collision  and  disaster. 

My  inspiration  came  to  me  perfectly  clear,  but  in  the 
urgent  circumstances  of  the  moment  I  had  no  time  in 
which  to  explain  to  anybody.  I  ordered  the  captain  of 
the  Georgia  to  turn  immediately  at  right  angles  to  the 
left,  and  I  ordered  Russell  to  make  a  P.  D.  L.  (pass  down 
the  line)  signal  with  the  semaphore,  for  the  other  ships 
of  my  division  to  follow  the  Georgia.  When  that  signal 
was  put  through  and  understood,  I  ordered  Russell  to 
make  another  P.  D.  L.  signal  for  the  Neiv  Jersey,  which 
was  the  last  ship  of  my  division,  not  to  change  her  course. 
I  then  told  Russell  to  make  another  P.  D.  L.  signal  for 


A  NEW  TACTICAL  MANCEUVER  515 

the  Virginia  to  fall  in  astern  of  the  New  Jersey.  Before 
this  time  I  had  turned  the  Georgia  again  to  the  right,  to 
her  original  course,  followed  by  the  Nebraska.  When 
the  Virginia  had  fallen  astern  of  the  New  Jersey,  I  or 
dered  the  Nebraska  to  fall  in  astern  of  the  Virginia,  and 
then  I  ordered  the  captain  of  the  Georgia  to  fall  in  astern 
of  the  Nebraska. 

This  evolution  must  have  looked  like  confusion  worse 
confounded  to  the  commander-in-chief,  for  in  the  midst 
of  it  he  signaled  to  me,  "What  are  you  doing?"  I  could 
not  answer  this  signal  at  the  time ;  but  the  commander-in- 
chief  soon  saw  what  I  was  doing,  and  realized  that  it  was 
the  only  thing  I  could  do,  though  it  was  something  en 
tirely  new  in  fleet  tactics. 

The  mano3uver  was  an  entire  success.  I  drew  up  a  re 
port  to  the  Navy  Department  describing  it  and  recom 
mending  that  it  be  adopted.  I  forwarded  the  report,  of 
course,  through  the  commander-in-chief.  He  approved 
it  favorably,  and  the  manoeuver  was  shortly  afterward 
adopted. 

By  this  time  I  had  made  a  number  of  basic  inventions, 
and  owned  sixty  United  States  patents,  besides  foreign 
patents.  The  invention  which  I  made  that  day  in  the 
stress  of  excitement  of  fleet  tactical  drill  I  never  patented, 
but  this  was  not  because  I  was  ashamed  of  it.  I  do  not 
know  of  any  other  invention  having  been  made  in  such  cir 
cumstances.  I  must  revise  the  last  statement,  however, 
by  saying  that,  according  to  my  conception  of  what  an  in 
vention  is,  all  the  new  movements  and  combinations  which 
naval  and  military  commanders  have  made  in  great  emer 
gencies  have  been  inventions,  and  of  the  most  brilliant 
and  important  kind.  Caesar  was  an  inventor,  and  by  far 
the  greatest  military  inventor  who  ever  lived.  Alexan 
der  was  an  inventor,  and  so  in  a  lesser  degree  was  Moltke. 

In  October,  1912,  I  published  in  the  Naval  Institute 
an  article  called,  "The  Mean  Point  of  Impact,"  which 
was  intended  to  prove  the  value  of  accurate  range-find 
ing.  The  article  started  with  a  short  mathematical  dis- 


516     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

cussion,  which  proved  that,  if  the  mean  point  of  impact 
of  a  salvo  fired  from  a  ship  was  fifty  yards  over  or  short 
of  a  target,  the  probability  of  hitting  the  target  would  be 
twelve  and  a  half  times  as  great  as  it  would  be  if  the  mean 
point  of  impact  were  150  yards  over  or  short.  As  a  mean 
point  of  impact  of  a  salvo  is,  roughly  speaking,  in  the 
middle  of  where  all  the  projectiles  fall,  and  as  this  mid 
dle  is  at  the  distance  from  the  ship  which  equals  the 
* '  sight  bar  range ' '  at  which  the  guns  are  fired,  this  meant 
that,  if  the  sight  bar  range  were  only  fifty  yards  wrong  in 
any  case,  the  chances  of  hitting  would  be  twelve  and  one- 
half  times  as  great  as  if  the  sight  bar  range  were  150 
yards  wrong. 

I  had  always  been  more  impressed  with  the  necessity 
for  accurate  range-finding  than  anybody  else  in  the  navy, 
but  I  had  never  realized  until  I  made  the  calculations  for 
this  article  how  great  the  value  of  accurate  range-finding 
is,  and  how  great  a  difference  would  be  made  by  a  dif 
ference  in  the  accuracy  of  range-finding  between  two 
ships  fighting  each  other,-  especially  if  that  range-finding 
were  very  accurate.  I  mean  that  I  had  never  realized 
that  (with  range-finding,  as  with  every  other  thing  in 
which  skill  is  required)  the  greater  the  skill,  the  greater  a 
difference  is  made  by  any  difference  in  skill.  For  in 
stance:  the  difference  of  a  few  seconds  in  the  time  re 
quired  to  run  a  mile  does  not  make  a  great  difference  in 
the  standing  of  any  two  common  horses,  but  among  the 
great  racers  the  difference  of  one  second  makes  almost  a 
difference  in  class. 

I  think  my  article  had  an  effect  in  rousing  officers  and 
men  to  increased  diligence  in  range-finding.  This  was 
the  case  not  only  in  the  navy,  but  in  the  army.  In  fact, 
General  Weaver,  chief  of  artillery  of  the  army,  issued  an 
order  that  every  officer  in  the  Coast  Artillery  should 
study  my  article.  I  believe  that  the  accuracy  of  German 
naval  gunnery  has  been  attained  mainly  by  following 
methods  like  those  that  I  have  always  urged. 

In  the  latter  part  of  July  the  battle-ships  of  the  fleet 


NIGHT  EXERCISES  517 

held  a  night  drill  in  which  the  second  squadron,  which 
was  under  my  command,  took  up  a  position  somewhere 
south  of  Block  Island,  and  the  first  squadron  endeavored 
to  find  it,  using  destroyers  as  scouts;  while  the  second 
squadron,  also  using  destroyers  as  scouts,  endeavored  to 
elude  it,  and  to  reach  a  position  from  which  it  could  make 
an  attack  upon  the  coast.  Fortunately  for  me,  I  was  able 
to  elude  the  first  squadron,  and  when  day  broke  on  the 
following  morning,  to  see  that  not  a  vessel  of  the 
"enemy"  was  in  sight. 

Shortly  after  this,  and  according  to  a  plan  previously 
arranged,  the  senior  division  commander  was  detached 
and  put  on  shore  duty,  and  I  was  put  in  command  of  the 
first  division  and  the  first  squadron,  and  made  thereby 
the  second  in  command  of  the  fleet.  Not  long  after  this 
the  commander-in-chief  directed  another  night  fleet  drill, 
much  like  the  previous  one,  but  different  in  some  details. 
In  this  case  I  was  in  command  of  the  first  squadron  de 
fending  the  fleet,  and  sent  in  pursuit  of  the  second  squad 
ron,  which  was  supposed  to  be  an  enemy  fleet,  and  which 
tried  to  elude  me.  I  shall  never  forget  that  night,  or  at 
least  one  part  of  it  somewhat  after  midnight,  when  I  was 
leading  my  squadron  at  a  speed  of  fourteen  knots  around 
Block  Island,  with  all  lights  out ;  especially  the  time  when 
information,  just  received  by  wireless  from  a  scout,  im 
pelled  me  to  make  an  abrupt  change  of  course  in  order 
to  catch  the  second  squadron,  under  conditions  such  that, 
if  I  made  a  mistake  in  my  hurried  calculations,  I  had  a 
good  chance  of  running  my  flag-ship  ashore,  and  having 
the  Utah  crash  into  her  from  behind.  I  suffered  an 
agony  for  about  a  minute;  but  fortunately  I  made  no 
mistake,  and  fortunately  I  caught  the  " enemy"  about 
an  hour  afterward. 

The  entire  fleet,  with  the  exception  of  the  flag-ship  of 
the  commander-in-chief,  was  now  temporarily  under  my 
command.  I  anchored  it  east  of  Block  Island,  and  re 
mained  there  for  a  few  hours,  because  of  a  misunder 
standing  by  one  of  the  division  commanders. 


518     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

I  got  the  fleet  under  way  at  daylight,  and  took  a  great 
deal  of  pleasure  in  conducting  it  from  there  to  an  anchor 
age  near  Fort  Pond  Bay,  at  the  eastern  end  of  Long  Is 
land,  where  the  commander-in-chief  was  anchored.  This 
was  the  only  time  except  once  that  I  ever  maneuvered  so 
large  a  number  of  vessels  of  different  kinds ;  I  think  there 
were  twelve  battle-ships  and  about  sixteen  destroyers.  I 
remember  realizing  how  much  there  was  to  be  learned, 
and  in  saying  to  myself  that  the  "club"  which  I  then 
held  in  my  hands,  enormous  as  it  was,  was,  after  all, 
merely  a  development  of  the  club  with  which  Cain  had 
killed  Abel ;  and  that  it  was  so  much  of  a  development  that 
it  was  more  powerful  than  any  army  in  the  world ;  more 
powerful,  in  fact,  than  all  the  armies  of  the  world  put 
together. 

Not  long  afterward  the  commander-in-chief  held  an 
other  fleet  drill  in  which  I  was  given  command  of  the 
greater  part  of  the  fleet,  and  given  the  task  of  starting 
with  the  fleet  from  Newport,  and  beating  off  an  enemy 
force  that  was  supposed  to  have  suddenly  appeared  out 
side.  According  to  the  rules  of  the  game,  I  won  it. 

Not  long  after  that  the  commander-in-chief  held  an 
other  drill,  in  which  half  the  fleet  was  supposed  to  en 
deavor  to  approach  a  part  of  the  coast  in  the  daytime, 
while  the  other  half  of  the  fleet,  of  which  I  was  in  com 
mand,  was  to  give  it  battle  and  beat  it  off.  I  was  so 
fortunate  as  to  be  able  to  T  the  column  of  the  enemy,  and 
to  get  him  under  such  a  gun-fire  from  my  ships,  and  such 
a  torpedo-fire  from  my  destroyers,  which  approached  him 
behind  a  smoke-screen,  that  I  was  able  to  defeat  him. 

This  ended  our  tactical  games  that  summer.  I  had 
taken  part  as  commander  of  one  of  the  competing  sides  in 
four  games,  and  in  every  game  I  had  been  so  fortunate  as 
to  be  the  winner. 

During  the  preceding  ten  years  I  had  made  a  study  of 
optics,  and  had  invented  and  constructed  several  optical 
instruments  which  I  will  not  mention  here,  because  they 
were  never  quite  successful,  and  were  never  submitted  by 


PRISM  SYSTEM  OF  TAEGET  PRACTICE     519 

me  for  practical  test.  I  had  had  an  uneasy  feeling  that 
by  some  very  simple  optical  device  we  might  be  able  to 
make  our  target-practice  much  less  onerous  and  much 
more  useful.  By  this  time  our  target  practice  at  sea  had 
become  a  very  difficult  matter  indeed,  not  from  the  point 
of  view  of  gunnery,  but  from  that  of  seamanship,  because 
of  the  tremendous  difficulties  involved  in  towing  the 
target  screen  which  we  fired  at,  which  was  about  ninety 
feet  long  and  thirty  feet  high.  To  tow  a  screen  in  a 
smooth  sea  and  a  light  breeze  was  not  difficult ;  but  it  was 
so  difficult  to  do  it  in  a  heavy  sea  and  a  strong  breeze 
that  tow-ropes  were  constantly  breaking,  and  targets 
were  constantly  drifting  ashore.  Besides,  the  number  of 
screens  required,  the  size  of  the  floats  needed  to  carry 
the  screens,  the  number  of  tugs  needed,  and  all  the  rest 
of  the  paraphernalia  involved,  forced  the  fleet  to  have 
target  practice  near  a  base,  and  Hampton  Roads  was  the 
only  practical  one. 

In  the  early  part  of  April,  before  I  took  command  of 
the  third  division,  I  went  down  to  witness  fleet  target- 
practice  unofficially,  and  took  up  my  quarters  with  my 
friend,  Captain  Spencer  Wood,  then  commanding  the 
Nebraska.  The  fleet  was  having  a  horrid  time  with  the 
target-rafts.  In  watching  the  maneuvers  of  tugs  with  a 
mutinous  target-raft  one  day,  it  suddenly  occurred  to  me 
that,  if  one  would  put  a  small  prism  of  glass  in  front  of  a 
telescope  sight,  the  rays  of  light  would  be  refracted,  say, 
five  degrees  to  the  right  or  left;  so  that  one  would  seem 
to  point  at  a  target,  and  yet  the  gun  would  be  pointed  five 
degrees  to  the  left  or  the  right  of  it.  This  would  enable 
a  man  to  use  another  ship  as  a  target,  and  yet  fire  five 
degrees  to  the  right  of  it.  Furthermore,  an  observer,  by 
holding  a  similar  prism  in  his  hand,  but  in  the  reverse  di 
rection,  could  see  the  splash  in  the  water  made  by  the  pro 
jectile  refracted  back;  so  that  the  splash  would  appear  in 
the  same  relation  to  the  target  that  it  would  actually 
have  if  the  gun  had  been  fired  directly  at  the  target. 

I  talked  over  this  matter  with  some  officers,  and  they 


520     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

all  declared  that  my  idea  would  bring  about  a  wonderful 
revolution  in  target-practice  if  I  could  only  make  it  work 
practically.  I  had  no  opportunity  of  doing  anything 
with  it  for  some  time ;  but  when  I  was  in  the  Georgia,  at 
Key  West,  I  bought  some  prisms.  I  secured  one  prism 
in  front  of  the  telescope  sight  of  a  six-pounder  gun,  sent 
a  boat  out  a  few  hundred  yards  distant,  and  myself  fired 
five  shots  directly  at  the  boat,  apparently.  I  reported 
this  to  the  Navy  Department,  and  when  I  was  in  com 
mand  of  the  first  division  at  Newport,  I  received  per 
mission  from  the  Bureau  of  Ordnance  to  try  the  experi 
ment  on  a  larger  scale. 

So  I  got  some  strongly  made  prisms,  and  secured  them 
in  a  position  in  front  of  the  telescope  sight  of  a  five-inch 
gun,  which  fired  a  shell  weighing  over  sixty  pounds. 
Then  I  sent  the  North  Dakota  to  a  position  about  fifteen 
hundred  yards  distant,  and  told  Lieutenant-Commander 
Madison,  the  gunnery-officer,  to  fire  forty-five  shots  di 
rectly  at  her.  This  he  did,  and  with  perfect  success. 
Then  I  got  permission  from  the  bureau  to  fire  twenty 
twelve-inch  shots.  After  making  proper  arrangements,  I 
fired  these  twenty  twelve-inch  shells,  each  weighing  over 
eight  hundred  pounds,  directly  at  the  Delaware,  ap 
parently. 

It  will  be  seen  that  by  this  plan  real  ships  could  be  used 
as  targets  instead  of  canvas  screens,  and  that  it  would 
not  be  necessary  to  go  to  any  specially  selected  place  for 
target-practice,  because  target-practice  could  be  held  at 
sea  anywhere  and  at  any  time. 

I  have  not  mentioned  one  very  great  difficulty  with 
carrying  out  this  plan,  however,  which  I  had  realized 
from  the  very  first,  but  which  seemed  to  be  merely  a  diffi 
culty  that  could  be  overcome.  I  refer  to  the  fact  that, 
unless  the  prism  is  held  exactly  horizontally,  the  ray  of 
light  will  not  be  refracted  exactly  horizontally,  but  be 
tilted  up  or  down.  I  thought  that  the  best  way  to  secure 
horizontality  was  to  connect  each  prism  with  a  gyroscope. 
As  Mr.  Elmer  E.  Sperry  had  recently  made  some  won- 


EEVIEW  IN  NEW  YORK  521 

derful  and  brilliant  inventions  in  gyroscopes,  I  explained 
my  plans  to  him  one  day  in  my  cabin.  He  said  he  was 
quite  sure  that  he  could  make  the  gyroscope  do  what  I 
wanted,  and  that  he  was  at  my  service,  and  the  navy's,  for 
doing  it. 

In  July,  1912,  the  Naval  Institute  issued  the  nomina 
tions  for  the  election  of  officers  and  members  of  the  board 
of  control  for  the  ensuing  year.  By  the  rules  of  the  insti 
tute,  there  were  to  be  three  nominations  for  each  posi 
tion.  The  rule  was  carried  out  in  this  instance  for  all  of 
the  offices  except  for  that  of  President ;  but  for  that  office 
only  one  person  was  nominated,  myself.  The  election 
took  place  in  October,  and  I  was  elected. 

A  grand  review  of  the  fleet  was  held  in  New  York  in 
October.  It  was  a  splendid  spectacle,  and  we  were  de 
lightfully  entertained.  One  day  my  chaperon  was  that 
extremely  delightful  gentleman,  President  John  Finley. 
As  the  presidential  election  was  to  take  place  in  the  fol 
lowing  month,  I  was  naturally  much  interested  in  what 
Mr.  Finley  told  me  in  regard  to  the  Democratic  candi 
date,  Mr.  Wilson.  Mr.  Finley  described  him  as  a  man  of 
enormous  ability,  and  one  capable,  he  felt  sure  from  a 
long  acquaintance  with  him,  of  handling  the  complicated 
affairs  of  the  United  States  both  internally  and  in  rela 
tion  to  foreign  powers  with  perfect  skill  and  foresight. 

About  this  time  The  New  York  Times  asked  for  an 
interview  with  me  in  which  I  should  give  the  Times  my 
views  as  to  the  state  of  the  navy  at  the  time,  the  way 'in 
which  it  had  progressed,  and  the  way  in  which  it  ought  to 
progress.  I  agreed  to  this  gladly,  and  had  a  delightful 
talk  with  Mr.  Edward  Marshall  one  Friday  evening. 
Mr.  Marshall  took  no  notes  whatever ;  but  on  the  follow 
ing  Sunday,  October  13,  1912,  the  Times  published  a 
full-page  interview  which  was  extraordinarily  accurate, 
and  illustrated  by  a  picture  of  me  that  looked  like  a  pic 
ture  of  Methuselah  with  epaulets. 

In  the  course  of  the  interview  I  extolled  what  the  navy 
had  done  and  was  still  doing,  except  in  one  matter,  that  of 


522     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

aeronautics.  I  was  beginning  to  become  much  concerned 
about  our  backwardness  in  this  matter.  One  of  Mr.  Mar- 
shalPs  questions  was: 

"What  has  the  navy  done  with  the  airplane?" 

My  answer  was : 

1  i  Much.  It  is  now  realized  by  the  whole  world  that  the 
airplane  will  in  the  future  be  a  very  important  element 
in  warfare.  But  notwithstanding  that  we  have  done 
something  with  it,  it  is  nevertheless  unfortunately  true 
that  the  United  States  Navy  has  shown  less  interest  in  the 
modern  developments  of  aviation  than  could  be  desired. 
As  a  whole,  we  do  not  seem  to  have  quite  apprehended  yet 
the  vast  scope  of  the  changes  which  the  aeroplane  will 
make  in  warfare. ' ' 

The  officers  and  men  of  the  fleet  were  delightfully  en 
tertained  in  New  York,  and  given  receptions,  entertain 
ments,  and  dinners.  At  these  dinners  many  of  the  best 
speakers  of  New  York  descanted  eloquently  on  the  ex 
cellence  of  our  navy  and  on  the  necessity  for  keeping  it 
abreast  the  progress  of  the  country  in  size  and  power. 

Shortly  after  the  ceremonies  in  New  York,  the  fleet,  or 
the  principal  part  of  it,  was  sent  to  Charleston,  South 
Carolina,  largely  to  stimulate  the  interest  of  the  people  in 
the  navy,  but  mainly  to  demonstrate  the  fact  that,  under 
good  conditions  of  weather,  our  super-dreadnoughts 
could  cross  the  bar  at  Charleston  at  high  tide. 

We  had  a  delightful  time  in  Charleston,  possibly  more 
delightful,  even,  than  in  New  York.  This  was  due  to  the 
shorter  distances  that  we  had  to  traverse,  to  the  smaller 
number  of  faces  to  remember,  and  to  that  peculiar  quality 
of  geniality  which  is  so  charming  an  attribute  of  the  peo 
ple  of  our  South.  The  ceremonies  and  entertainments 
were  much  like  those  given  us  in  New  York.  They  were 
not  on  so  large  a  scale  or  so  expensive,  but  the  speeches 
were  very  much  more  pleasant  to  listen  to.  The  art  of 
oratory,  while  not  at  all  extinct  in  the  North,  especially 
in  the  pulpit,  has  lost  much  of  that  grace  and  polish 
which  used  to  adorn  it  even  in  the  North;  because,  un- 


FUNERAL  OF  WHITELAW  REID  523 

doubtedly,  of  the  greater  importance  which  practicality 
has  assumed  in  cities,  where  many  million  people  must 
live  together.  But  in  the  South,  where  the  conditions  of 
living  are  easier,  and  where  men  have  more  time  to  de 
vote  to  the  sentimental  side  of  life,  the  art  of  oratory  is 
still  practised  in  all  its  former  beauty. 

On  the  way  North  we  stopped  at  Hampton  Roads.  We 
knew  that  the  service  of  Admiral  Osterhaus,  as  com- 
mander-in-chief  of  the  fleet,  was  drawing  to  a  close,  and 
there  was  much  speculation  as  to  who  would  succeed  him. 
As  I  was  second  in  command,  I  had  hopes  that  I  should 
do  so ;  but  I  made  no  application  for  the  position,  because 
I  knew  that  Rear- Admiral  Badger  desired  it,  and  Badger 
was  not  only  my  senior  in  rank,  but  an  officer  admirably 
fitted  for  the  post.  The  afternoon  after  arriving  at 
Hampton  Roads  I  read  in  the  Army  and  Navy  Journal, 
that  Badger  had  been  selected.  As  I  was  only  a  few 
numbers  behind  Badger  on  the  navy  list,  it  occurred  to 
me  that  I  would  probably  not  be  kept  in  the  fleet,  and  that 
I  might  take  Badger's  place  as  aid  for  inspections. 

In  a  few  days  I  received  orders  to  do  so. 

From  Hampton  Roads  we  went  to  New  York.  At  that 
time  the  body  of  Ambassador  Whitelaw  Reid  was  being 
sent  across  in  the  British  cruiser  Galatea.  I  received  or 
ders  to  proceed  to  sea  with  my  flag-ship,  another  dread 
nought,  and  four  destroyers,  to  meet  the  funeral-ship  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Nantucket,  escort  it  to  an  anchorage 
near  West  96th  Street,  New  York,  take  charge  of  the  fun 
eral  proceedings  until  the  body  reached  the  shore,  attend 
the  ceremonies  at  the  cathedral,  and  supply  a  suitable 
escort. 

We  met  the  funeral-ship  at  the  appointed  locality,  and 
escorted  her  to  New  York.  We  found  the  entrance  to 
Sandy  Hook  on  the  following  morning  but  almost  imme 
diately  afterward  a  dense  fog  set  in.  This  cleared  away 
shortly,  and  we  advanced  rapidly  up  the  lower  bay;  but 
suddenly,  just  north  of  the  Narrows,  we  were  caught  in 
a  rapidly  descending  fog,  and  so  were  a  great  many 


524     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

merchant  steamers  which  had  been  attempting  to  seize 
the  clear  weather  and  to  go  out  or  come  in.  My  two 
dreadnoughts  and  four  destroyers  and  the  British  ship 
seemed  suddenly  to  have  been  caught  in  a  mob  of  vessels 
of  all  sorts,  each  one  of  which  kept  sending  up  the  most 
dismal  warning  signals  with  her  steam-whistle.  For  a 
few  minutes  the  situation  looked  extremely  critical;  but 
the  fog  cleared  away  as  suddenly  as  it  had  come,  and  I 
steamed  my  heterogeneous  collection  of  vessels  as  rapidly 
as  possible  to  the  designated  anchorage. 

I  had  to  get  the  body  ashore  next  day.  It  was  in  a 
very  heavy  leaden  box,  which  was  secured  on  the  upper 
deck  of  the  Galatea.  To  my  great  distress,  the  weather 
became  exceedingly  windy;  which  made  the  water  so 
rough  that  the  task  of  handling  the  heavy  casket  would 
be  extremely  difficult. 

In  the  early  part  of  the  afternoon  it  was  lowered  in 
safety  into  one  of  our  sailing  launches  alongside  of  the 
Galatea  and  then  the  funeral  procession  started  to  the 
shore.  I  was  not  much  concerned  as  to  what  would  hap 
pen  until  the  attempt  should  be  made  to  remove  the 
casket  from  the  sailing  launch,  and  put  it  on  the  float  at 
the  river  landing.  But  I  was  very  much  concerned  as  to 
what  would  happen  then,  for  I  knew  that  both  the  boat 
and  the  float  would  be  jumping  up  and  down  violently 
and  irregularly,  and  that  the  operation  of  transferring 
the  casket  would  be  exceedingly  difficult.  I  impressed 
the  officer  in  charge  of  the  operation  with  the  seriousness 
of  the  matter,  and  told  him  that  if  that  casket  was 
dropped  into  the  river,  the  fact  would  be  known  in  Aus 
tralia  in  half  an  hour.  I  remember  the  extreme  anxiety 
with  which  I  watched  the  operation  through  a  long  glass 
mounted  on  my  telescope-mount,  and  my  great  relief 
when  a  signal  announced  that  it  had  been  completed. 

The  following  forenoon  magnificent  funeral  services 
were  held  in  the  Cathedral  of  St.  John  the  Divine.  The 
church  was  crowded  both  in  the  nave  and  the  chancel. 
Ex-President  Roosevelt  sat  on  the  right  side  of  the 


END  OF  SEA  CAREER  525 

chancel,  and  I  remember  with  what  military  alacrity  he 
sprang  to  his  feet  when  President  Taft  came  into  the 
chancel  with  a  large  staff,  and  took  a  seat  on  the  opposite 
side.  I  sat  with  my  staff  in  the  front  pew,  on  the  left 
side  of  the  middle  aisle. 

This  was  my  last  official  act  as  a  sea-officer.  My  wife 
and  a  few  friends  took  lunch  with  me  on  board  the  Florida 
at  one  o'clock.  Shortly  afterward,  my  beautiful  two- 
starred  flag,  the  acme  of  all  I  had  worked  for  since  I  was 
six  years  old,  was  hauled  down  disconsolately  from  the 
masthead.  Captain  Maxwell  gave  it  to  me  to  keep,  and 
with  it  under  my  arm  I  took  passage  ashore  in  what  only 
an  hour  before,  had  been  my  barge. 

Life  has  great  changes  for  all  of  us.  But  few  changes 
are  as  great  as  when  an  admiral  leaves  his  flag-ship  be 
hind  him  forever,  and  leaves  behind  him,  also  forever,  the 
life  of  the  sea,  and  the  charm  of  the  sea,  and  the  fluttering 
flags,  and  the  uniform  and  the  glamour  and  the  danger 
and  the  splendor,  and  that  wonderful  thing — command. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 

AID   FOE   OPERATIONS,    AERONAUTICS   AND   OUTBREAK 
OF    WAR 

I  ASSUMED  the  duties  of  aid  for  inspections  on  Janu 
ary  6,  1913 ;  but  in  the  afternoon  of  February  8,  Sec 
retary  Meyer  told  me  that  Admiral  Vreeland's  health 
was  breaking  down  and  that  he  wished  me  to  take  his 
place  as  aid  for  operations. 

Of  course  I  was  gratified  by  being  detailed  to  the  most 
important  position  in  the  navy,  but  I  cannot  say  that  I 
was  pleased.  This  was  because  I  did  not  feel  that  I  was 
competent  to  undertake  the  duties.  My  experience  for 
almost  a  year  in  charge  of  the  war-plan  section  of  the 
General  Board  had  let  me  see  how  much  there  was  to  be 
done  in  the  matter  of  getting  up  adequate  war  plans, 
and  had  also  made  me  feel  that  I  did  not  have  the  kind 
of  knowledge  and  ability  required  for  that  work.  My 
training  had  not  fitted  me  for  it  except  incompletely,  and 
my  year  and  three  months  of  experience  in  command  of  a 
division  in  the  active  fleet  had  served  more  to  show  me 
what  needed  to  be  done  than  to  indicate  to  me  the  steps 
which  should  be  taken  to  do  it. 

At  this  time  the  navy  was  getting  along  smoothly; 
the  super-dreadnoughts  were  a  success,  our  skill  in  gun 
nery  was  increasing,  the  war  college  was  firmly  estab 
lished,  and  the  fleet  itself  was  in  excellent  condition.  As 
to  the  Navy  Department,  the  aid  system  was  working 
well,  and  had  the  confidence  of  the  service,  and  Secretary 
Meyer  had  proved  himself  to  have,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
upper  officers  of  the  navy,  the  best  conception  of  what 
a  navy  ought  to  be  of  any  secretary  in  many  years. 

But  the  upper  officers  of  the  navy  realized  that  while 

526 


NAVY  NOT  ORGANIZED  FOR  WAR        527 

the  navy  was  in  good  condition  for  times  of  peace,  it 
was  not  organized  for  war,  for  the  reason  that  no  meas 
ures  had  been  taken  by  which  it  could  be  expanded 
quickly,  and  yet  maintain  the  efficiency  of  the  individual 
ships  and  of  the  fleet.  We  had  enough  trained  men, 
or  almost  enough,  to  man  the  fleet  in  peace-time,  but 
we  had  no  reserve  to  fall  back  upon  to  man  it  suffi 
ciently  for  war,  to  man  the  ships  in  reserve  which  would 
be  added  to  the  fleet,  to  man  ships  and  other  vessels  that 
would  be  bought,  and  to  supply  the  extra  men  needed  in 
the  shore  stations.  In  the  European  and  Japanese  nav 
ies,  on  the  contrary,  large  forces  of  reserves  were  kept 
in  a  state  of  continuous  readiness,  so  that  they  would 
be  almost  instantly  available  in  case  of  war.  We  knew 
that,  in  case  of  war,  we  should  be  called  upon  suddenly 
to  recruit  a  great  many  wholly  untrained  men,  and  to 
bring  back  into  the  navy  a  few  partly  trained  men.  We 
knew  that  the  only  way  in  which  to  utilize  those  men 
would  be  to  distribute  them  among  all  the  ship  and  shore 
stations;  but  we  realized  that  this  would  entail  an  enor 
mous  falling  off  in  efficiency  of  even  the  ships  in  the  active 
fleet,  because  those  ships  would  have  to  send  to  other 
ships  and  to  shore  stations  many  men  who  had  been 
trained  to  skill  in  certain  duties,  and  to  replace  those 
trained  men  with  untrained  men.  As  foreign  navies, 
especially  the  British,  German,  and  Japanese,  had  fore 
seen  this  trouble  and  provided  against  it,  we  knew  that  if 
we  got  into  war  with  any  of  those  navies,  our  navy  would 
start  under  a  tremendous  handicap. 

We  knew  also  that  our  Navy  Department  had  not  kept 
pace  with  the  times  in  the  matter  of  its  method  of  ad 
ministration.  The  principal  foreign  navies  had  realized 
that  the  need  for  utilizing  modern  means  of  transpor 
tation  and  communication,  necessitated  an  organization 
of  the  department  itself  whereby  the  navy  as  a  whole 
could  be  handled  as  a  war  machine.  Our  Navy  Depart 
ment  was  working  under  virtually  the  same  organization 
as  that  under  which  it  had  worked  during  the  Civil  War 


528     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

except  that  Mr.  Meyer  had  recently  established  four  aids 
to  help  him  handle  its  vast  and  intricate  mechanism. 

I  found  Mr.  Meyer  an  excellent  man  to  work  with. 
He  was  cold  in  his  manner,  and  had  at  first  a  rather 
depressing  effect  on  a  person,  the  effect  making  him  feel 
inferior.  But  I  soon  found  that  he  was  really  a  modest 
man,  and  not  " stuck  up,"  as  he  seemed  at  first  to  be. 
It  seemed  to  me  that  his  principal  defect  as  secretary 
of  the  navy  was  his  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  physical  sci 
ences  and  of  engineering.  Of  course,  as  secretary  of 
the  navy,  he  did  not  have  to  be  a  physicist  or  an  engineer ; 
but  it  would  have  helped  him  vastly  if  he  had  had  suffi 
cient  knowledge  of  the  principles  of  the  physical  sciences 
and  of  engineering  to  be  able  to  understand  clearly  the 
recommendations  and  discussions  of  the  ordnance  officers, 
engineers,  and  constructors,  and  to  talk  to  them  in  their 
own  language. 

The  upper  officers  of  our  navy  at  this  time  realized 
that  there  were  only  two  navies  that  we  had  cause  to 
fear,  the  German  and  the  Japanese.  We  knew,  of  course, 
that  the  British  Navy  was  much  stronger  than  ours ;  but 
we  saw  no  reason  for  coming  into  collision  with  it.  We 
knew  also  that  the  French  Navy  was  about  the  equal 
of  ours  in  some  ways,  and  that  it  had  been  much  greater 
than  ours  a  few  years  previous;  but  we  knew  also  that 
Camille  Pelletan,  while  minister  of  marine,  had  injured 
it  so  greatly  that  it  had  not  yet  recovered,  and  we  argued 
that  if  it  were  possible  for  a  minister  of  marine  to  be 
permitted  to  do  so  much  harm  to  a  navy,  there  must  be 
something  wrong  somewhere  else.  Therefore  we  did 
not  fear  the  French  Navy. 

As  to  the  Japanese  Navy,  we  knew  that  it  was  inferior 
to  ours  in  the  matter  of  ships  and  guns;  but  we  knew 
also  that  the  Japanese  had  an  excellent  system  of  trained 
reserves,  which  we  did  not  have,  and  that,  in  case  we 
should  get  into  war  with  Japan,  Japan  could  take  the 
Philippines,  and  that  any  fleet  which  we  should  send 
out  to  Asia  in  consequence  would  have  to  operate  out 


JAPANESE  AND  GERMAN  NAVIES        529 

there  at  such  tremendous  disadvantages  in  the  matter 
of  supplies,  repair  stations,  etc.,  that  whatever  advan 
tage  we  might  have  in  our  greater  number  of  ships  would 
be  largely  overcome.  We  knew  also  that  the  Japanese 
were  far  better  strategists  than  we  and  that  they  showed 
it  in  many  ways;  for  instance,  in  the  organization  and 
administration  of  the  Navy  Department.  We  knew  that 
the  Japanese  Navy  was  controlled  strategically  by  a  gen 
eral  staff  the  members  of  whom  had  been  carefully 
selected  years  before  and  carefully  trained  since  then. 
But  it  was  the  German  Navy  that  occupied  our  atten 
tion  the  most.  We  did  not  know  as  much  about  the  Ger 
man  Navy  as  we  should  have  liked  to  know;  but  we 
did  know  that  the  German  Navy  was  modelled  on  the 
German  Army,  and  that  the  German  Army  was  the  most 
efficient  organization  of  the  world.  We  knew  that  the 
German  Emperor  was  a  military  man  first  and  a  naval 
man  second,  and  that  he  was  directing  all  the  resources 
of  Germany,  material,  intellectual,  and  spiritual,  to  the 
perfection  of  the  German  army  and  navy.  We  knew  that 
it  was  a  German  physicist,  Helmholtz,  who  had  analyzed 
and  synthesized  sound,  and  that  the  Germans  were  very 
expert  at  both  analysis  and  synthesis.  We  also  knew 
that  they  had  directed  their  powers  to  analyzing  military 
and  naval  problems  and  situations,  and  to  synthesizing 
military  and  naval  methods  to  deal  with  them.  We  knew 
that  the  German  Army  and  Navy  had  not  been  built 
haphazard,  and  that  they  were  not  operated  by  hap 
hazard  methods;  but  that  they  had  been  built  up,  and 
were  being  operated  by  mathematical  methods.  We 
knew  that  the  German  Navy  Department  was  divided  into 
three  parts,  the  general  staff,  the  ministry  of  marine,  and 
the  naval  cabinet,  which  executed  respectively  the  func 
tions  of  strategy,  logistics,  and  tactics;  that  is,  of  plan 
ning  to  do,  providing  the  means  with  which  to  do,  and 
doing.  We  knew  that  these  three  divisions  were  coequal 
in  rank,  that  each  was  headed  by  a  man  highly  trained 
for  his  task,  that  all  were  under  the  immediate  direction 


530     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

of  the  emperor,  and  that  he  was  highly  trained  for  his 
task. 

We  did  not  like  the  German  idea  of  war  or  the  German 
belief  that  might  makes  right  and  as  loyal  Americans  we 
abhorred  the  utter  subjection  of  the  individual  man  to 
the  state.  But  we  realized  that  the  German  naval  ma 
chine  was  immeasurably  better  than  ours,  and  we  real 
ized  that  Prussia's  attacks  on  Denmark  in  1864,  on  Aus 
tria  in  1866,  and  on  France  in  1870  showed  the  direction 
of  the  national  purpose ;  and  that  Germany  would  again 
precipitate  a  war  as  soon  as  she  again  felt  sure  that  she 
could  win.  Therefore  we  deplored  the  dangerous  ineffi 
ciency  of  our  Navy  Department. 

We  did  not  have  even  a  general  staff,  and  the  only 
man  in  the  United  States  Navy  who  could  remotely  pre 
tend  to  occupy  the  position  of  a  naval  strategist  was  my 
self  !  I  occupied  that  position  simply  because  I  occupied 
the  position  of  military  adviser  to  the  secretary.  I  knew 
I  was  not  fitted  by  training  or  experience  for  such  a  posi 
tion,  but  I  had  had  as  much  training  and  experience  as 
anybody  else  in  the  navy. 

The  fact  was  that,  fit  or  unfit,  I  was  the  official  strate 
gist  of  the  navy.  Fit  or  unfit,  the  duty  devolved  upon  me 
to  do  the  best  I  could. 

Mr.  Meyer  left  office  on  the  fifth  of  March,  twenty-two 
days  after  he  had  made  me  aid  for  operations.  When 
he  left  Washington,  the  four  aids  went  to  the  railroad 
station,  and  said  good-by  to  him  with  that  feeling  of 
regret  and  respect  with  which  one  says  good-by  to  a 
thoroughly  honorable  man. 

Mr.  Josephus  Daniels  became  Secretary  of  the  Navy 
on  March  5,  1913,  and  the  aids  were  presented  to  him  by 
Mr.  Meyer.  We  found  Mr.  Daniels  to  be  an  extremely 
attractive  man,  with  a  geniality  of  manner  and  an  evi 
dent  companionableness  that  were  in  marked  contrast 
to  the  cold  manner  and  New  England  reserve  of  Mr. 
Meyer.  We  had  the  pleasure  soon  of  meeting  Mrs. 
Daniels  and  their  four  splendid  and  handsome  boys,  and 


THE  CASE  OF  CAPTAIN  POTTS  531 

of  feeling  that  inexpressible  pleasure  that  one  always 
feels  in  meeting  an  evidently  happy  family.  My  subse 
quent  acquaintanceship  with  Mr.  Daniels  confirmed  me 
in  the  estimate  that  I  made  of  him  personally  on  the 
first  day  of  our  acquaintance,  and  which  I  have  taken 
all  proper  occasions  to  express.  In  my  diary  I  see  fre 
quent  mentions  of  him  as  a  man  of  refinement,  sympa 
thy,  and  good  nature,  whose  serenity  was  rarely  ruffled 
and  whose  politeness  was  unfailing. 

Shortly  after  Mr.  Daniels  assumed  office,  the  promotion 
of  Captain  Templin  M.  Potts,  the  aid  for  personnel, 
became  due.  Potts  had  been  captain  of  the  battle-ship 
Georgia,  and  when  Bear- Admiral  Wainwright  had  been 
made  aid  for  operations,  Mr.  Meyer  had  detached  him 
from  the  command  of  the  Georgia  and  made  him 
chief  intelligence  officer  on  the  request  of  Wainwright. 
Later  he  relieved  Admiral  Potter  as  aid  for  personnel. 
According  to  law,  Potts  was  examined  by  a  board  of 
three  rear-admirals  on  the  active  list.  He  was  passed. 
All  the  officers  expected  this,  because  Potts  was  not  only 
a  man  of  ability,  but  of  the  kind  of  ability  and  experience 
that  would  make  him  a  good  rear-admiral.  To  our  sur 
prise,  the  Secretary  refused  to  accept  the  report  of  the 
admirals  on  the  ground  that  Potts  had  not  had  enough 
sea  service,  and  he  ordered  Potts  to  sea  in  the  command 
of  the  Louisiana!  I  expostulated,  but  without  avail. 
The  following  Sunday  I  visited  the  Secretary's  house 
and  expressed  myself  with  much  emphasis  in  regard 
to  what  I  declared  was  an  act  of  injustice  of  the  na 
ture  of  executing  an  ex-post  facto  law.  I  pointed  out 
to  the  Secretary  that  Potts  had  discharged  all  his  du 
ties  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  his  superiors,  and 
that  it  would  be  fatal  to  discipline  if 'officers  could  not 
find  in  the  satisfactory  discharge  of  their  duties  the  best 
assurance  of  promotion.  I  expressed  myself  with  so 
much  emphasis  that  I  expected  the  Secretary  would  re 
move  me  at  once  from  the  position  of  aid  for  operations. 
In  fact,  on  my  way  to  his  house,  I  had  told  Admiral 


532     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Schroeder  and  Admiral  Osterhaus  that  I  thought  my 
term  of  office  would  expire  that  afternoon.  But,  to  my 
surprise,  the  Secretary  accepted  my  expostulations  with 
perfect  composure  and  good  humor.  When  I  left,  I  shook 
hands  with  him ;  and  I  departed  with  the  conviction  that 
he  was  personally  sincere. 

During  the  following  three  months  I  came  to  have  a 
great  liking  for  the  Secretary;  but  I  thought  that  I  saw 
in  him  an  incorrect  judgment  as  to  the  best  way  in  which 
to  make  the  navy  effective  for  the  purpose  for  which  it 
was  maintained  by  the  United  States.  It  seemed  to  me 
that  he  did  not  see  the  navy  as  a  whole,  but  only  certain 
parts  of  it;  with  the  natural  result  that  the  parts  upon 
which  he  fixed  his  attention  seemed  to  him  larger  than 
they  really  were.  I  did  not  seem  to  be  able  to  make  him 
see  the  navy  as  a  whole ;  but  I  thought  that  if  I  could  get 
him  to  go  to  the  war  college,  and  show  him  the  great  num 
bers  of  books  on  the  art  of  war  and  explain  the  strategic 
games  to  him,  I  might  make  him  see  that  the  navy  was 
really  a  vast  and  highly  specialized  machine,  and  not  an 
aggregation  of  separate  parts.  He  went  up  to  the  war 
college  with  me  and  became  interested  in  it  at  once.  This 
interest  he  maintained  during  the  two  years  that  I  was 
aid  for  operations,  though  I  could  not  make  up  my  mind 
that  he  really  understood  the  purpose  of  the  college.  It 
seemed  to  me  that  he  regarded  it  as  a  place  where  one 
went  to  learn  things  that  were  already  known,  as  one 
does  at  the  usual  institutes  of  learning  that  we  call 
colleges. 

The  following  August,  1913,  I  secured  the  Secretary's 
permission  to  spend  the  month  at  the  war  college  in 
stead  of  taking  the  usual  leave.  I  did  this  because  it 
seemed  to  me  that  the  war  college  was  not  quite  close 
enough  to  the  practical  navy,  and  I  wanted  to  try  to 
see  what  was  the  trouble.  My  conclusion  was  that  the 
war  college  personnel  was  too  largely  self -replacing,  and 
so  I  suggested  to  Admiral  Knight,  who  had  a  mind  which 
was  fine,  but  which  had  been  exercised  mostly  in  the  pre- 


PRESIDENCY  OF  WAR  COLLEGE          533 

else  arts  of  seamanship,  gunnery,  and  navigation,  that  he 
should  become  president.  Knight  demurred,  but  finally 
agreed.  I  then  secured  the  approval  of  the  General 
Board,  including  Admiral  Dewey,  and  of  the  other  aids. 
But  when  I  proposed  Knight's  name  to  the  Secretary, 
he  said  he  thought  that  the  man  for  that  position  was 
Admiral  Fiske! 

This  surprised  me  at  first,  but  I  quickly  realized,  what 
I  had  come  strongly  to  suspect,  that  the  Secretary  wanted 
to  get  rid  of  me.  Some  of  my  friends  had  told  me  at 
different  times  that  I  would  not  stay  as  aid  for  opera 
tions  long,  because  I  was  not  sufficiently  pliable. 

The  position  of  president  of  the  war  college  was 
pleasanter  than  that  of  aid  for  operations,  for  he 
had  a  house,  garden,  servants,  carriage,  barge,  and 
all  the  other  delightful  things  that  go  with  a  high 
naval  or  military  command.  My  friends  told  me,  how 
ever,  that  I  must  hang  on  if  I  could.  I  did  so  for 
about  two  weeks,  but  finally  I  told  the  Secretary  that  I 
would  not  set  a  bad  example  to  the  service,  and  that  I 
would  go  to  the  war  college,  and  willingly,  if  he  insisted 
on  it.  But  the  next  day  Admiral  Dewey  came  back  to 
Washington,  and  when  I  told  him  about  the  proposed 
change,  he  said  it  must  not  be.  He  said  that  I  was  exactly 
the  man  for  aid  for  operations,  and  that  if  I  gave  it  up, 
somebody  might  be  put  in  who  cared  only  for  his  own 
ease  and  comfort,  regardless  of  the  efficiency  of  the  navy. 
Dewey  went  to  the  Secretary  twice  and  finally  prevailed 
upon  him  to  retain  me  as  aid  for  operations.  Then 
Knight  became  president  of  the  war  college.  He  made  an 
admirable  president,  a  much  better  president  than  I 
would  have  made. 

During  the  month  of  August  my  wife  and  I  spent  one 
evening  at  the  casino.  A  dance  was  going  on  in  which 
some  couples  were  exercising  themselves  with  the 
"turkey  trot,"  which  at  that  time  was  a  most  ungainly 
performance.  I  got  into  conversation  with  Rear-Ad 
miral  Davis,  retired,  a  man  ten  years  older  than  I,  and 


534     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

very  highly  educated.  I  made  some  laughing  comment 
about  the  dance,  to  which  he  answered  very  gravely,  "I 
see  nothing  to  laugh  at."  He  spoke  so  gravely  that  I 
realized  that  he  was  not  speaking  merely  of  the  dance 
that  we  were  witnessing,  and  so  I  asked  him  why  he 
spoke  as  he  did.  He  said : 

"You  know  that  this  is  not  new,  and  is  all  over  Eu 
rope." 

I  said  I  knew  it  was  all  over  Europe,  but  that  I 
thought  it  was  something  new.  He  answered  in  effect 
as  follows  (and  what  he  said  was  the  most  remarkable 
thing  that  has  ever  been  said  to  me) : 

"This  especial  step  may  be  new,  but  dancing  crazes 
are  old,  and  this  is  part  of  a  dancing  craze.  I  am  quite 
sure  that  it  portends  evil.  Whenever  a  savage  tribe 
hears  that  the  men  of  another  tribe  are  dancing,  it  gets 
ready  for  war.  There  have  been  several  dancing  crazes 
recorded  in  history.  One  dancing  craze  preceded  the 
Crusades,  another  dancing  craze  preceded  the  Reign  of 
Terror.  Every  dancing  craze  has  been  followed  in  about 
a  year  by  an  awful  war. ' ' 

In  about  a  year  the  war  broke  out  in  Europe ! 

This  suggests  the  degree  of  preventability  of  wars  by 
mortals. 

On  October  11  I  was  again  reflected  president  of  the 
Naval  Institute. 

Shortly  after  the  new  administration  came  in,  some 
of  the  cabinet  officers  and  members  of  their  families  went 
down  in  the  Mayflower  to  see  the  target-practice  of  the 
fleet.  I  went  also,  and  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  them. 
During  the  subsequent  two  years  I  had  the  honor  of 
meeting  all  the  cabinet  officers  and  their  wives  on  various 
occasions,  and  I  have  never  met  more  delightful  people. 
But  my  experience  was  the  reverse  of  what  I  expected  in 
regard  to  the  cabinet  officers  themselves.  I  had  always 
looked  up  to  a  cabinet  officer  with  great  awe,  realizing 
that  each  one  was  in  such  a  responsible  position  that 
any  failure  on  his  part  to  discharge  his  duties  wisely 


CABINET  OFFICERS  535 

would  injure  the  fortunes  and  happiness  of  many  million 
people.  As  I  was  a  great  admirer  of  our  form  of  gov 
ernment,  and  of  the  elaborate  mechanism  employed  for 
selecting  the  best  men  from  a  population  of  a  hundred 
million  people,  my  idea  of  a  cabinet  officer  was  a  Hercules 
of  intellect,  a  man  capable  of  mentally  grasping  a  diffi 
cult  problem  in  the  way  a  trained  wrestler  physically 
grasps  an  antagonist.  I  thought  of  cabinet  officers  as 
men  dwelling  apart  in  a  splendid  intellectual  isolation, 
looking  down  on  ordinary  men  like  me,  and  the  kind  of 
people  with  whom  I  had  spent  my  life.  But  I  found  a 
number  of  very  genial  and  unassuming  men,  kindly  and 
companionable,  but  without  any  trace  of  grandeur  that 
I  could  discover  in  their  intellects.  In  fact,  it  seemed 
to  me  that  none  of  them  was  in  the  intellectual  class  with 
Luce,  Mahan,  or  Harry  Taylor;  that  none  of  them  was 
a  man  of  brilliancy  and  originality  like  Park  Benjamin, 
Frank  J.  Sprague,  or  A.  A.  Michelson ;  and  that  none  of 
them  indicated  the  administrative  capacity  of  Mr.  Thayer, 
president  of  the  Western  Electric  Company,  or  of  sev 
eral  other  men  whom  I  knew  in  New  York. 

I  had  the  good  fortune  to  talk  with  Mr.  Bryan  a  num 
ber  of  times  on  important  matters  when  he  was  Secretary 
of  State,  and  to  hear  him  speak  on  several  occasions.  He 
was  by  far  the  most  impressive  man  I  have  ever  met.  I 
have  never  seen  a  man  who  conveyed  to  me  such  an  im 
pression  of  majesty.  That  magnificent  head ;  those  hand 
some  eyes ;  that  mobile  mouth ;  that  attitude  at  once  com 
posed  and  alert;  that  facial  expression,  benignant,  self- 
reliant,  kindly  and  yet  strong,  and  that  wonderful  voice — 
all  combined  to  produce  a  fascination  at  first  which  mas 
tered  me.  But  I  was  soon  amazed  at  the  superficialness 
of  the  knowledge  that  he  possessed,  and  the  shallowness 
of  the  ideas  that  he  advanced.  I  think  it  was  Sydney 
Smith  who  said  of  Webster,  "No  man  can  be  as  wise  as 
he  looks."  I  do  not  know  about  that ;  but  I  do  know  that 
William  J.  Bryan  was  not  as  wise  as  he  looked. 

During  the  first  year  of  my  duties  as  aid  for  operations 


536     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  Japanese  situation  and  the  Mexican  situation  occu 
pied  my  attention  continually.  Of  the  two,  the  Japanese 
situation  was  the  more  important,  the  Mexican  situation 
the  more  exasperating.  My  diary  contains  many  notes 
concerning  these  matters,  some  of  which  are  highly  in 
teresting,  but  which  it  would  be  improper  to  publish  now. 
I  was  much  surprised  at  some  things  that  happened,  and 
I  amuse  myself  occasionally  now  by  reading  from  my 
diary  the  impressions  which  they  made  upon  my  feeble  in 
tellect.  Those  happenings  made  my  intellect  feel  ex 
tremely  feeble,  because  they  confused  it  so.  My  great 
source  of  comfort  when  I  was  unusually  confused  was 
John  Bassett  Moore,  then  counselor  of  the  State  De 
partment,  who  occupied  a  position  in  the  State  Depart 
ment  analogous  to  mine  in  the  Navy  Department.  I 
think  I  was  a  source  of  comfort  to  him  also,  because  some 
times  he  would  say  to  me,  *  *  Now,  Admiral  is  n  't  it  awful  f 
now,  if  you  think  about  it,  isn't  it  really  awful?"  I 
would  tell  him  that  I  thought  it  was  awful,  and  my  as 
surance  that  it  was  awful  seemed  to  comfort  him.  He 
was  the  greatest  authority  in  the  United  States,  and 
almost  in  the  world,  on  international  law. 

Not  very  long  after  the  new  administration  came  in,  the 
secretary  of  the  navy  started  his  project  for  educating 
the  enlisted  men.  All  naval  officers  were  sympathetic 
with  this  idea,  because  we  knew  that  the  better  educated 
a  man  is,  other  things  being  equal,  the  more  efficient  he 
is.  Of  course  this  knowledge  has  been  held  in  armies 
and  navies  for  more  than  two  thousand  years,  and  the  sub 
ject  is  one  which  has  continuously  engaged  the  attention 
of  military  and  naval  commanders.  It  has  always  been 
recognized  as  one  of  the  most  important  matters  con 
nected  with  armies  and  navies,  and  is  one  on  which  many 
books  have  been  written.  But  while  military  and  naval 
commanders  have  realized  the  necessity  for  increasing 
the  knowledge  of  the  men  under  their  command,  they  have 
always  realized  that  it  was  merely  a  means  to  an  end 


EDUCATING  ENLISTED  MEN  537 

and  not  the  end  itself,  and  they  have  realized  that  it  is 
possible  to  exaggerate  the  importance  of  the  question, 
great  as  that  importance  is.  In  our  navy  we  had  at 
one  time  gone  to  greater  lengths,  I  think,  than  in  any 
other  army  or  navy.  This  was  when  the  training  sys 
tem  of  Admiral  Luce  was  in  full  flower.  The  necessity 
for  meeting  the  actual  demands  of  practical  naval  life 
had  resulted  in  cutting  down  a  great  deal  of  Luce's  sys 
tem;  but  this  was  not  accomplished  until  after  a  tre 
mendous  amount  of  discussion  pro  and  con  by  the  officers 
of  our  navy. 

The  subject  of  the  education  of  the  enlisted  men  was 
therefore  a  subject  on  which  we  were  very  much  up  to 
date.  In  all  the  navy  the  man  who  had  gone  into  this 
subject  the  most  profoundly,  except  Admiral  Luce,  was 
Captain  William  F.  Fullam,  then  aid  for  personnel. 
Fullam  and  I,  in  particular,  and  the  other  two  aids  be 
sides,  gave  our  hearty  support  to  the  Secretary's  ideas, 
therefore;  but  it  soon  seemed  to  us  that  he  was  going 
further  than  even  Admiral  Luce.  The  Secretary,  how 
ever,  had  the  courage  of  his  convictions,  and  instituted 
a  system  of  education  of  the  enlisted  men.  I  am  in 
formed  that  the  system  initiated  has  been  gradually  com 
ing  into  disuse,  and  that  now  the  matter  of  the  educa 
tion  of  enlisted  men  is  virtually  in  the  same  state  that 
it  was  in  before. 

One  of  the  projects  which  I  tried  very  hard  to  induce 
the  Secretary  to  support  was  that  of  a  Council  of 
National  Defense,  analogous  to  the  Council  of  Impe 
rial  Defense  in  Great  Britain,  to  be  composed  of  cer 
tain  cabinet  officers,  certain  senators  and  representatives 
in  Congress,  and  certain  army  and  navy  officers.  A  bill 
to  establish  such  a  council  had  been  introduced  by  Rep 
resentative  Richmond  Pearson  Hobson,  and  was  intended 
to  prevent  misunderstandings  on  important  military  and 
naval  questions.  This  measure  had  the  support  of  the 
War  Department,  the  General  Board  of  the  Navy  and  the 


538     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Army  and  Navy  Joint  Board  of  which  Dewey  was  the 
head.  I  was  never  able  to  make  the  Secretary  think 
favorably  of  such  a  council. 

In  the  latter  part  of  this  year  I  read  "The  Great  Il 
lusion."  It  is  a  masterly  book,  and  points  out  clearly 
that  war  is  unprofitable  in  the  long  run.  Of  course  it  is. 
So  is  burglary,  so  is  sin,  and  so  is  the  indulgence  of  most 
human  passions.  This  book  ignores  the  existence  of 
human  passions,  and  is  virtually  based  on  the  false  as 
sumption  that  the  whole  effort  of  everybody's  life  is  to 
make  money.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  great  illusion 
which  this  book  really  discloses  is  the  illusion  in  the  au 
thor's  mind  that  human  beings  are  entirely  different 
from  what  they  basically  are. 

I  see  the  following  entry  in  my  diary: 

Dec.  31.  End  of  1913 !  Trying  to  get  Secretary  to  give 
Capt.  Bristol  sufficient  authority  to  get  a  good  start  for  aero 
nautics.  I  think  Sec.  will  do  so  in  the  end,  but  Bristol  seemed 
quite  discouraged  last  night,  &  talked  of  giving  up  the  job. 
Persuaded  him  to  sleep  on  it :  this  morning  he  seems  better. 

Shortly  after  becoming  aid  for  operations  I  took  up 
the  matter  of  aeronautics.  I  had  become  increasingly  im 
pressed  with  the  necessity  of  our  developing  aeronautics 
as  quickly  as  possible,  thinking  that  it  would  be  a  tre 
mendous  assistance  to  the  fleet,  especially  for  preventing 
actual  invasion  of  the  coast  by  the  means  which  I  had 
suggested  for  preventing  invasion  of  the  Philippines.  I 
found  that  the  Navy  Department  had  done  little  in  com 
parison  with  what  foreign  navies  had  done,  and  that 
there  was  little  prospect  of  doing  much  more.  There 
was  a  captain  in  charge  of  aviation,  but  after  several 
conversations  with  him,  I  saw  that  his  mind  wa-s  more 
occupied  with  making  certain  inventions  connected  with 
aeroplanes  than  with  the  subject  of  developing  an 
aeronautical  service.  I  finally  realized  that  I  should 
have  to  get  some  new  blood  in;  but  it  was  not  easy  to 
find  an  officer  who  was  available,  who  had  the  necessary 


NAVAL  AERONAUTICS  539 

ability,  and  who  was  willing  to  take  up  his  time  on  shore 
duty  with  such  a  new  and  untried  thing. 

Finally  I  got  hold  of  Commander  Bristol,  who  had 
just  returned  from  a  cruise  in  Asia ;  but  I  found  that  he 
was  not  at  all  enthusiastic  about  taking  up  aviation,  and 
that  he  wanted  to  become  director  of  naval  intelligence. 
After  some  .time  I  succeeded  in  impressing  Bristol  with 
the  truth  that  the  very  fact  of  this  being  a  new  departure 
wa-s  the  best  possible  reason  why  he  should  assume  the 
duty  and  not  discard  it.  I  told  him  that  I  considered 
it  the  most  important  thing  for  the  navy  to  take  up,  be 
cause  aeronautics  was  the  weakest  place  in  the  navy,  and 
because  a  man  would  have  an  opportunity  to  do  real  con 
structive  work.  So  firmly  was  I  impressed  with  the  im 
portance  of  aeronautics  that  I  seriously  entertained  the 
idea  of  asking  the  Secretary  to  let  me  give  up  the  posi 
tion  of  aid  for  operations  and  take  up  aeronautics  as 
my  sole  duty. 

Finally  Bristol  consented,  and  I  got  him  ordered  to 
special  duty  in  the  Navy  Department.  I  could  not  get 
an  office-  for  him  for  a  long  while,  so  that  for  nearly  a 
year  he  occupied  half  of  the  big  desk  in  my  office.  This 
was  most  inconvenient  for  me  and  for  him  as  well,  be 
cause  when  any  important  official  came  in,  such  as  an 
ambassador,  minister,  general,  or  admiral,  I  had  to  ask 
Bristol  to  go  out. 

On  January  27,  1914,  I  went  to  Hampton  Roads  and 
embarked  on  board  the  Louisiana  to  take  a  trip  to  Key 
We&t,  in  company  with  the  New  Hampshire,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  testing  my  "prism  system"  of  target-practice 
and  gunnery.  On  February  4,  while  near  Key  West,  I 
fired  sixty-eight  seven-inch  shells  at  the  New  Hampshire. 
The  experiment  was  a  success  in  all  ways,  except  that  the 
gyroscopes  failed  to  keep  the  prisms  vertical.  I  thought 
that  this  could  be  rectified  and  I  still  do;  but  up  to  the 
present  time  I  have  not  had  an  opportunity  of  taking  up 
the  invention  again.  I  expect  to  do  so  soon  and  to  make 
it  a  success. 


540     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

Under  date  of  Sunday,  March  1, 1914, 1  see  the  follow 
ing  paragraph : 

I  wrote  a  letter  yesterday,  to  Mr.  Padgett,  which  I  asked  Mr. 
Roosevelt  to  sign,  transmitting  a  copy  of  information  that  the 
German  fleet  in  its  autumn  cruise  will  comprise  certain  numbers 
of  vessels  of  various  kinds, — and  pointing  out  its  enormous 
superiority  to  our  fleet  and  that  this  superiority  was  going  to 
increase  each  year.  Mr.  Roosevelt  signed  it  and  it  was  mailed. 

The  information  received  was  to  the  effect  that  the 
German  Fleet  at  their  maneuvers  would  have  twenty- 
one  battle-ships,  three  battle-cruisers,  five  small  cruisers, 
six  flotillas  of  destroyers  (that  is,  sixty-six  seagoing 
torpedo-vessels)  eleven  submarines,  an  airship,  a  number 
of  aeroplanes  and  special  service  ships,  and  twenty-two 
mine-sweepers,  all  in  one  fleet,  all  under  one  admiral,  and 
maneuvered  as  a  unit. 

Having  had  my  alarm  excited  some  years  ago  in  regard 
to  the  German  Navy,  and  feeling  confident  that  its 
strategical  control  was  much  better  than  ours,  this  in 
formation  came  to  me  with  that  kind  of  shock  which  one 
feels  when  bad  news  that  is  expected  finally  arrives. 
Here  was  the  fact  that  not  only  was  the  German  Fleet 
numerically  larger  than  ours  in  all  the  important  units, 
but  that  it  already  had  incorporated  in  it,  and  was  using 
in  its  strategical  and  tactical  drills,  agencies  that  were 
hardly  even  in  the  experimental  stage  of  our  navy. 

When  I  read  about  those  maneuvers,  and  realized  that 
the  necessary  planning  had  been  done  years  before  in 
an  office  in  Germany  like  mine  in  the  United  States,  I  felt 
as  an  amateur  is  apt  to  feel  when  he  sees  a  professional 
at  work. 

To  quote  from  my  diary : 

March  16.  Principal  interest  last  week — to  me — lay  in  paper 
of  General  Board,  showing  that  the  Dept.  had  taken  no  steps  to 
put  into  effect  the  recommendation  we  made  to  Sec.  last  April, 
in  the  form  of  an  Administrative  Plan,  by  which  the  Dept.  could 
get  the  Bureaus  to  take  steps  preparing  for  war.  etc.,  etc. 


WINE  MESS  ORDER  541 

Mar.  19.  Took  to  Sec.  Daniels  the  paper  of  G.  B.  showing 
that  Dept.  had  no  plan  or  system  for  getting  prepared  for  war. 
I  argued  for  half  an  hour.  I  might  as  well  have  tried  to 
scratch  a  diamond  with  an  iron  file !  I  could  not  make  him  see 
that  Dept.  is  not  really  ready  now!  I  could  not  make  him  see 
that  the  G.  B.  merely  recommends  very  general  plans,  &  that 
these  have  no  effect,  unless  the  recommendations  are  acted  on! — 
Later,  I  talked  to  Asst.  Sec.  Roosevelt.  Of  course,  he  understood 
the  principles  at  stake. 

Mar.  25.  ...  Today  Mr.  Franklin  Roosevelt  &  I  concluded 
our  (tentative)  plan  for  the  combined  fleet  &  Army  maneuvers 
next  August,  I  interviewed  Asst.  Sec.  War,  Gen.  Wood,  Gen. 
Weaver  &  Gen.  Mills  about  it — They  were  delighted !  At  end 
conference,  concluded  to  appoint  two  navy  and  two  army  officers 
to  work  out  details. 

Monday,  Apr.  6.  Feeling  as  to  stopping  of  wine  mess  by  Sec. 
is  not  one  of  surprise.  Officers  think  it  unwise,  &  that  the  effect 
will  be  to  influence  officers  to  smuggle  whiskey  &  cocaine  on 
board,  &  to  take  meals  on  shore,  where  they  can  drink  whiskey 
— instead  of  wine  &  beer  on  board. — Sec.  approves  Sen.  Weeks 's 
proposal  to  start  navy  line  of  freight,  mail  &  passenger  ships. 

When  I  received  the  secretary's  order  six  weeks  later, 
I  expostulated  orally,  and  then  wrote  him  a  very  long 
letter  concerning  it,  dated  May  27,  1914.  My  letter  was 
caused  not  so  much  by  his  prohibition  of  alcoholic  liquors 
as  by  the  way  in  which  the  order  was  expressed,  and  by 
the  letter  of  the  surgeon-general,  on  which  the  secretary's 
order  was  largely  based.  What  excited  my  indignation 
was  not  the  prohibition,  but  the  fact  that  the  Secretary's 
order  and  the  surgeon-general's  letter  were  so  expressed 
as  to  give  two  very  incorrect  impressions.  One  impres 
sion  was  that  the  Secretary's  order  abolished  the  use  of 
liquor  in  the  officers'  messes  on  board  ship,  whereas  it 
merely  abolished  the  use  of  wine  and  beer;  whisky  and 
other  spirituous  liquors  had  been  abolished  fifty  years  be 
fore  on  the  initiative  of  Commodore  Foote  of  our  navy. 
The  other  impression  made  by  the  surgeon  general 's  let 
ter  was  that  insobriety  among  the  enlisted  men  was  a 
negligible  quantity,  because  they  were  not  allowed  liquor, 


542     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  KEAR-ADMIRAL 

and  that  they  were  in  a  much  better  state  in  the  matter 
of  sobriety  than  the  officers  were,  who  were  allowed 
liquor.  The  letter  of  the  surgeon-general  was  an  in 
sult  to  the  navy  and  every  officer  in  it.  Near  the  close  of 
my  long  letter,  and  in  suggesting  certain  possible  ill  re 
sults,  was  the  sentence,  "Another  effect  would  be  an  in 
creased  temptation  to  use  cocaine  and  other  drugs." 
This  sentence  was  misquoted  later,  as  will  be  narrated. 

At  this  time  Badger  was  in  command  of  the  fleet,  and 
Fletcher  was  second  in  command.  I  desired  to  relieve 
Badger  when  the  end  of  his  service  should  come,  al 
though  the  position  of  commander-in-chief  of  the  fleet 
was  not  so  important  as  that  as  aid  for  operations.  For 
this  reason  some  of  my  friends  tried  to  dissuade  me.  My 
reason  was,  as  I  frequently  stated,  that  I  thought  the 
older  officers  should  show  the  example  to  the  younger 
officers  of  applying  for  sea  duty,  and  that  it  was  bad 
for  the  younger  officers  to  get  the  idea  that  shore  stations 
were  more  important  than  sea  stations.  Personally,  I 
did  not  desire  the  position,  principally  for  the  reason 
that  my  wife 's  health  was  becoming  increasingly  delicate. 
I  made  no  official  application,  but  I  told  the  secretary 
that  I  should  like  the  position,  and  that  Fletcher  would 
like  to  become  aid  for  operations,  with  the  view  of  be 
coming  commander-in-chief  later,  when  I  should  retire  in 
June,  1916.  Fletcher  and  I  were  fast  friends,  and  we 
had  discussed  this  arrangement  several  times  together. 
Fletcher  was  a  year  and  a  half  younger  than  I. 

Some  time  in  April,  1914,  I  asked  the  Secretary  to  let 
me  exchange  with  Fletcher  and  take  command  of  my  old 
division.  I  fully  expected  to  be  commander-in-chief  al 
though  the  Secretary  had  made  me  no  promise.  I  was 
senior  to  both  Winslow  and  Fletcher,  who  were  my  only 
competitors.  I  knew  that  Fletcher  ought  to  have  com 
mand  of  the  fleet  in  case  he  wished  it,  because  of  his  re 
cent  excellent  service  in  Mexico.  Both  Dewey  and  Wain- 
wright  had  told  me  this,  and  I  had  agreed  with  them,  and 
I  had  told  them  so,  and  several  others  besides.  But 


FLETCHER'S  TELEGRAM  543 

Fletcher  had  told  me  positively  that  he  was  willing  to 
be  aid  for  operations  until  I  retired. 

Under  date  of  April  30  is  the  following  entry  in  my 
diary : 

Sec.  Nav.  in  accord,  with  my  request  telegraphed  Fletcher, 
asking  if  he  would  like  to  change  places  with  me. 

May  1.  Fletcher  answered  above  dispatch,  saying  he  would 
not  like  to  become  aid  for  operations,  as  he  wished  to  succeed 
present  C.  in  C.  in  command  of  fleet ! 

This  telegram  amazed  me  beyond  words.  I  knew 
Fletcher  well  enough,  however,  to  feel  sure  that  some 
thing  had  happened  since  the  time  when  he  told  me  that 
he  would  like  to  become  aid  for  operations  and  have  me 
take  command  of  the  fleet.  I  told  the  Secretary  so,  and 
said  I  expected  to  receive  a  letter  from  Fletcher  explain 
ing.  In  a  few  days  I  received  a  letter  from  Fletcher, 
saying  that  just  before  receiving  the  telegram  he  had  seen 
an  officer  fresh  from  Washington  who  told  him  that  he 
knew  positively  that  the  Secretary  was  to  make  Winslow 
the  commander-in-chief,  and  that  this  was  his  reason 
for  answering  the  telegram  as  he  did.  I  told  Secretary 
Daniels  the  substance  of  Fletcher's  letter. 

To  quote  from  my  diary : 

June  12.  Admiral  Dewey  seems  to  have  suffered  a  slight 
stroke.  N.  Y.  Sun  publishes  editorial  on  my  "Diplomatic  Re 
sponsibility  of  Naval  Officers"  published  in  Institute. 

June  15.  Sec.  Nav.  told  me  the  accounts  published  in  morn 
ing  papers  were  correct — that  he  is  going  to  make  Fletcher  C.  in 
C. — I  told  him  I  could  make  no  objection — that  I  had  continu 
ously  praised  Fletcher  as  a  fine  admiral — &  that  he  could  make 
no  mistake  in  making  Fletcher  C.  in  C. — I  also  told  him  that 
all  the  G.  B.  except  Capt.  Shoemaker  had  voted  (informally) 
when  I  put  the  question — that  the  position  of  Aid  for  Operations 
was  much  more  important  than  the  position  of  C.  in  C.  of 
fleet,  although  the  position  of  C.  in  C.  was  much  the  more  pleas 
ant  &  desirable.  Also  that  I  held  a  position  exactly  like  that 
which  is  called  "First  Sea  Lord"  in  the  British  Navy,  and 
Chief  of  Staff  in  other  navies  &  in  armies. 


544     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

July  26.  .  .  .  Servia  has  defied  Austria's  ultimatum.  Russia 
must  help  Servia  &  Germany  must  help  Austria!  Wonder  how 
war  can  be  avoided. 

July  27.  Big  European  war  seems  to  hinge  on  whether  or  not 
Russia  comes  to  aid  of  Servia. 

I  asked  the  Secretary  for  permission  to  spend  the 
month  of  August  in  Newport  with  the  General  Board  in 
stead  of  taking  the  customary  month's  leave.  He  gave 
permission,  and  on  July  29  I  started  for  Newport.  I 
reached  Newport  on  July  31. 

July  31.  Reached  Newport  and  reported  to  Prest.  War  Col 
lege  for  duty.  War  imminent. 

Though  the  war  college  was  under  me  as  aid  for  opera 
tions,  yet  Admiral  Knight  was  my  senior  officer  and  senior 
officer  of  the  General  Board,  besides  being  president  of 
the  war  college  and  commandant  of  the  second  naval 
district. 

The  afternoon  papers  of  July  31  were  so  positive  that 
war  was  to  be  declared  as  to  impress  me  with  the  neces 
sity  of  acting  immediately  and  getting  the  navy  pre 
pared  as  soon  as  possible  for  war.  Although  I  was  not 
a  profound  student  of  European  affairs,  I  knew  that  Ger 
many  and  Austria  on  one  side,  and  Great  Britain  and 
France  and  Russia  on  the  other  side,  had  been  bitterly 
hostile  for  several  years,  and  that  only  the  most  skilful 
diplomacy  had  kept  them  from  flying  at  one  another's 
throats.  Furthermore,  it  seemed  to  me  that,  because  of 
the  German  character  and  the  chaotic  condition  of  Mari 
time  International  Law,  the  United  States,  as  the  greatest 
maritime  country  after  Great  Britain  and  Germany,  could 
hardly  escape  from  being  dragged  into  the  war. 

So  I  decided  that  evening  to  request  Knight  to  call 
a  meeting  of  the  General  Board  as  early  as  possible  the 
following  morning,  and  to  urge  the  board  to  write  a  letter 
to  the  department,  pointing  out  the  danger  of  our  being 
brought  into  the  war,  and  urging  the  department  to  take 
immediate  steps  to  put  the  navy  on  a  war  footing.  I 


LETTER  OF  GENERAL  BOARD     545 

thought  of  suggesting  to  the  department  that  the  Presi 
dent  be  urged  to  call  a  meeting  of  Congress  immediately, 
but  I  realized  that  such  an  action  might  be  considered  as 
too  great  an  assertion  of  military  initiative,  and  so  I  gave 
up  the  idea. 

To  quote  from  my  diary: 

Aug.  1.  Gen.  Board — or  rather  the  members  present  here — 
Knight,  Fiske,  Knapp,  Hood  &  Shoemaaker — sent  letter  to 
Dep't,  pointing  out  possible  causes  of  danger  in  regard  to  Eu 
ropean  nations,  especially  in  matters  connected  with  our  neu 
trality — &  concluded  letter  by  recommending  that  all  the  battle 
ships  (except  such  as  are  needed  in  Mex.  &  Caribbean  waters) 
be  sent  to  their  home  yards,  to  be  docked  and  gotten  ready.  I 
also  sent  a  letter  recommending  this,  as  Aid  for  Operations  & 
referring  to  G.  B's  letter. 

/  think  this  was  the  first  step  toward  preparedness 
that  was  taken  in  the  United  States. 


CHAPTER  XXXV 

THE    UNPREPAREDNESS    OF   THE    NAVY 

I  REMAINED  at  the  war  college  throughout  the  month 
of  August,  1914.  Naturally,  the  subject  of  the  war 
occupied  our  minds  virtually  all  of  the  time.  We  all 
realized  that  a  situation  of  the  utmost  possible  gravity 
confronted  the  United  States.  We  knew  that  Russia 
and  France  had  been  defeated  tremendously  in  the  two 
last  wars  in  which  they  had  engaged,  and  that  the  fault 
had  been  wholly  theirs.  Russia  had  proved  in  her  war 
with  Japan  that  she  was  incapable  of  fighting  success 
fully  in  a  modern  war,  and  France  had  proved  the  same 
thing  forty-four  years  before.  Russia's  defeat  had  been 
so  recent  as  to  show  there  was  small  probability  of  her 
being  able  to  fight  effectively;  and  although  France  had 
had  forty-three  years  in  which  to  get  ready  for  war,  we 
knew  that  she  had  not  been  preparing  as  Germany  had 
been.  We  saw  little  to  make  us  believe  that  France  was 
in  good  condition.  The  most  discouraging  single  thing 
was  the  fact  that  one  man,  Camille  Pelletan,  had  been 
allowed  almost  to  ruin  the  French  Navy  in  four  years. 
What  could  such  a  fact  prove  except  that  there  was  some 
thing  radically  weak  in  the  French  nation?  We  knew 
of  the  Dreyfus  scandal,  and  of  the  many  political  and 
social  scandals  in  which  people  occupying  high  position  in 
France  had  been  involved.  Regarding  Great  Britain, 
we  know  that  her  navy  was  the  best  in  the  world,  but  we 
had  some  reasons  for  supposing  that  it  was  not  quite  'so 
efficient  in  point  of  the  utilization  of  modern  scientific 
methods  as  the  German  Navy.  As  to  the  British  Army, 
we  knew  what  Lord  Roberts,  Lord  Kitchener,  and  others 
had  said,  and  we  believed  what  they  said.  We  knew  how 
the  British  nation  had  treated  Lord  Roberts,  and  this 

546 


THE  UNPREPAREDNESS  OF  THE  NAVY  547 

did  not  give  us  much  hopefulness  as  to  what  Great  Britain 
could  do.  We  knew  also  that  Germany  was  the  most  effi 
cient  nation  in  the  world,  and  that  she  made  a  business 
of  war  not  only  in  the  army  and  navy,  but  also  in  the 
entire  government;  so  that  Germany  was  prepared  for 
war  not  only  militarily,  but  economically.  We  knew  that 
not  only  was  she  better  prepared  for  starting  war,  but 
that  she  was  better  prepared  for  waging  war,  because 
she  had  trained  men  to  handle  the  army  and  navy; 
whereas  in  Great  Britain  and  France  the  army  and  navy 
were  handled  by  politicians,  and  in  Eussia  by  grand 
dukes. 

But  the  most  discouraging  single  conviction  was  that 
Germany  would  not  have  gone  into  the  war  unless  she 
felt  absolutely  sure  that  she  would  win  it.  We  knew 
the  methods  of  the  German  General  Staff,  because  those 
were  the  methods  which  we  at  the  war  college  were  try 
ing  to  learn.  We  knew  that  all  the  nations  that  would 
fight  Germany  would  fight  her  by  methods  which  they 
had  learned  from  Germany  and  in  the  practice  of  which 
they  were  less  skilled.  We  knew  that  Germany  had  a 
system  of  getting  intelligence  from  other  countries  by 
means  of  secret  agencies;  so  that  it  was  virtually  im 
possible  that  Germany  could  be  laboring  under  many 
serious  misapprehensions  in  regard  to  her  antagonists. 
We  knew  that  Germany  was  "out  for  the  stuff,"  just  as 
much  as  any  highwaymen  that  hold  up  a  railroad  train. 
We  knew  that  Germany  had  made  a  careful  * '  estimate  of 
the  situation"  in  regard  to  Denmark,  and  after  that, 
had  deliberately  attacked  her  with  success  in  1864.  We 
knew  that  she  had  done  the  same  thing  to  Austria  in  1866. 
We  knew  that  she  had  done  the  same  thing  to  France  in 
1870.  We  knew  that  since  then  Germany  had  been  pre 
paring  not  only  militarily,  but  economically,  and  we  felt 
convinced  that  she  had  first  made  an  estimate  of  the 
situation  in  regard  to  Great  Britain,  France,  and  Russia, 
and  had  then  deliberately  attacked  them  in  the  light  of 
that  estimate.  Therefore  most  of  us,  including  myself, 


548     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

concluded  that  the  chances  of  success  were  greatly  in 
favor  of  Germany.  Being  convinced  of  this,  and  know 
ing  Germany's  hatred  for  the  United  States,  we  saw 
ahead  of  the  United  States  a  situation  of  the  greatest 
possible  peril. 

I  left  Newport  on  the  evening  of  August  30,  and  ar 
rived  at  the  Navy  Department  at  nine  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  September  1.  I  expected  to  find  an  atmos 
phere  of  tension  and  excitement.  I  found  perfect  calm. 
No  one  seemed  to  think  that  anything  in  particular  had 
happened  or  was  going  to  happen.  The  officers  with 
whom  I  talked  expressed  a  mild  surprise  that  the  admin 
istration  had  not  called  an  extra  session  of  Congress 
and  started  to  get  the  army  and  navy  ready ;  but  as  most 
of  these  officers  were  in  positions  in  which  their  whole 
duty  was  to  carry  out  orders  received  from  superior 
authority,  they  seemed  to  feel  at  ease.  Some  of  the 
higher  officers,  however,  were  distinctly  uneasy. 

My  diary  says : 

>»  Sept.  1.  Reported  return  to  Sec.  Had  good  talk  with  Sec. 
&  tried  to  impress  him  with  seriousness  of  fleet's  unprepared- 
ness.  I  doubt  if  I  succeeded.  I  explained  target  practice,  etc. 
Sec.  has  created  office  of  "Aid  for  Education,"  &  is  much  stuck 
on  idea!  Gosh! 

I  suddenly  realized  that  during  the  month  of  August, 
1914,  when  the  whole  civilized  world  had  been  thrown 
into  the  maelstrom  of  actual  and  threatened  war,  most 
of  our  fleet  had  been  kept  in  Mexican  waters,  instead  of 
being  sent  North  and  got  ready,  and  that  the  Secretary 
was  carrying  out  as  an  important  project — not  the  pre 
paring  of  the  fleet,  but  the  establishment  of  an  elaborate 
system  for  educating  the  enlisted  men.  He  had  ordered 
Captain  George  R.  Clark  to  assume  the  duties  of  aid  for 
education,  and  had  given  him  as  an  office,  the  large  room 
next  to  mine,  formerly  occupied  by  the  aid  for  personnel. 
By  this  time  the  position  of  aid  for  personnel  had  be 
come  vacant. 


THE  UNPREPABEDNESS  OF  THE  NAVY  549 

The  position  of  aid  for  personnel  was  analogous  to  that 
of  second  sea  lord  in  the  British  Navy  and  chief  of  the 
naval  cabinet  in  the  German  Navy.  In  the  German 
Navy  the  Navy  Department  was  divided  into  three  parts, 
each  presided  over  by  its  appropriate  chief.  Of  these 
chiefs  the  chief  of  staff  did  the  planning;  the  chief  of 
the  naval  cabinet  issued  the  orders  to  the  officers  and 
men ;  and  the  minister  of  marine  provided  the  material  in 
the  shape  of  ships,  guns,  etc.  These  three  officials  re 
ported  to  the  kaiser  direct,  and  received  orders  from 
him  direct.  The  kaiser  was  the  commander-in-chief  of 
the  navy  and  the  army,  as  is  our  President.  In  Germany 
there  was  no  intermediary  between  the  commander-in- 
chief  and  the  forces  which  he  commanded.  The  German 
system  worked  very  well.  (I  wish  we  had  it.) 

In  the  early  part  of  September  my  diary  deals  mostly 
with  the  situation  in  Mexico,  with  what  to  me  looked  like 
the  inefficiency  of  the  State  Department,  and  with  ques 
tions  of  international  law.  An  international  law  board 
had  been  formed  to  give  advice  to  the  State  Depart 
ment  when  international  law  situations  came  up.  One 
of  the  members  of  the  board  was  a  civilian ;  the  other  two 
members  were  Captain  H.  S.  Knapp,  and  Captain  J.  H. 
Oliver  of  the  navy. 

My  position  soon  became  excessively  disagreeable.  I 
think  that  the  time  between  the  first  of  September  and 
the  seventeenth  of  December,  1914,  when  I  gave  my  testi 
mony  to  Congress,  was  the  unhappiest  time  in  my  life. 
If  I  could  have  had  the  support  of  Admiral  Dewey,  it 
would  have  helped  me  a  great  deal;  but  Admiral  Dewey 
at  this  time  was  suffering  from  the  effects  of  the  partial 
stroke  which  he  had  received  on  June  12,  and  had  been 
warned  by  the  doctors  not  to  exert  himself  in  any  way 
either  physically  or  mentally,  and,  above  all,  to  avoid 
all  causes  of  excitement.  He  was  seventy-seven  years 
old,  and  was  never  again  'the  same  man  after  his  attack. 
He  was  always  kind  to  me,  almost  affectionate,  and  con 
tinually  assured  me  of  his  approval  and  of  his  wish 


550     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

that  he  could  help  me.  He  often  said  something  like 
this,  "I  wouldn't  have  your  job  for  anything  in  the 
world;  but  you  're  the  best  man  we  have  for  the  job, 
and  you  Ve  got  to  hold  on  to  it."  I  was  very  unhappy 
indeed.  I  could  see  the  German  machine  smashing  its 
way  across  the  mineral-bearing  part  of  France,  crushing 
the  comparatively  improvised  machines  of  England  and 
France,  and  threatening  the  very  existence  of  the  United 
States — and  we  watching  the  spectacle  as  a  child  watches 
a  fire  spreading. 

Some  quotations  from  my  diary  are: 

Sept.  12.  At  Baltimore  today,  Sec.  State  said  new  era  of 
Peace  is  about  to  dawn ! !  Made  out  &  out  peace  speech !  Gosh. 
This  foreshadows  his  attitude  &  that  of  Sec.  Nav.  in  coming 
contentions  as  to  lessons  of  this  War  towards  U.  S.  Army  & 
Navy! 

f  Sept.  14.  Fletcher  came  in  today.  Dined  together,  &  trying 
to  arrange  program  for  fleet.  Agree  that  trouble  is  not  with 
Mr.  Daniels,  as  an  individual,  but  with  the  fact  that  he  is  given 
absolute  &  uncontrolled  power  over  a  great  machine  he  does  not 
understand. 

Sept.  20.  I  am  elected  member  "  National  Institute  of  Social 
Sciences."  Good.  This  is  an  honorable  distinction,  as  the  mem 
bership  is  elective,  &  limited  to  those  who  have  done  something 
distinctive  for  humanity. 

Sept.  24.  After  conference  with  Gen.  Wotherspoon,  Chief  of 
Staff  of  the  Army,  I  tried  to  get  Sec.  to  see  the  wisdom  of  put 
ting  .more  Army  at  Vera  Cruz,  &  taking  away  the  navy.  I  tried 
to  show  the  reasonableness  of  this  plan,  from  all  points  of  view, 
European  &  Mexican,  military,  national  &  international.  From 
each  separate  standpoint,  the  wisdom  of  what  the  Army  &  Navy 
have  all  the  time  advised  becomes  apparent.  All  of  this  Mexican 
tragedy  would  have  been  avoided  if  the  recommendations  of  the 
Army  &  Navy  had  been  followed  in  this  Mexican  matter,  for  it 
is  a  subject  of  which  they  know  more  than  anyone  else,  by  reason 
of  their  acquaintanceship  with  the  Spanish- American  character, 
&  the  fact  that  an  important  factor  in  the  Mexican  situation  is 
the  military  factor.  There  seems  to  be  almost  a  determination 
to  deny  the  fact  that  the  military  ingredient  exists  in  our  national 
&  international  life. 


Sept.  26,  1914.  Sec.  still  absent,  also  Asst.  Sec.  ...  I  told 
Lansing— Counsellor  State  Dept. — that  if  the  State  Dept  wore 
away  the  efficiency  of  the  navy  by  keeping  the  fleet  divided,  back 
ing  up  State  Dept's  comparatively  unimportant  policies  in  places 
like  Haiti  &  Mex.,  it  may  some  day  need  an  efficient  navy  to 
back  up  an  important  policy,  &  find  there  is  no  efficient  navy, 
wherewith  to  back  up  that  policy. 

Sept.  28.  Sec.  Nav.  &  I — &  thousands  of  others,  witnessed 
flights  &  turns  &  twists  in  the  air  of  the  aviator  Beachey. — 
Bristol  &  I  want  2  million  next  year  for  air  craft. — I  tried  very 
hard  to  impress  Sec.  with  gravity  of  situation  as  to  unprepared- 
ness  of  fleet. 

Sept.  29.  I  told  Sec. —  (trying  to  get  three  ships  sent  north 
from  Mexico  in  place  of  three  ships  just  going  there)  that — if 
public  attention  were  called  anxiously  &  critically  to  the  navy, 
because  of  antagonistic  relations  with  Germany  or  other  country, 
— that  the  navy  could  not  stand  inspection,  because  it  had  been 
kept  so  divided  up  for  a  year  &  a  half. 

On  October  first  I  had  a  talk  with  the  secretary  in  rela 
tion  to  certain  inventions  made  by  Isham.  I  told  the  Sec 
retary  that  I  considered  that  most  of  Mr.  Isham 's  inven 
tions  were  not  at  all  practical,  but  that  one  of  his  inven 
tions,  a  diving-shell,  ought  to  be  given  a  careful  trial. 
I  explained  that  Isham  claimed  that  his  shell  was  so 
shaped,  and  his  fuse  so  constructed  that  if  'the  shell  struck 
the  water,  say  one  hundred  feet  short  of  a  ship,  it 
would  not  ricochet  above  the  water,  but  would  dive,  and 
strike  the  under-body  part  of  the  ship  and  explode ;  and 
that,  even  if  it  missed  the  ship,  it  would  explode  about 
a  second  after  striking  the  water,  and  near  the  ship.  I 
told  the  Secretary  that  this  would  be  a  very  valuable 
weapon  for  fighting  destroyers  and  submarines  and  even 
battleships  if  it  could  be  made  to  work.  I  told  him  also 
that  I  thought  that  it  could  be  made  to  work ;  that  I  was 
confident  that  I,  for  instance,  could  make  it  work.  Isham 
was  backed  by  Representative  Hobson,  the  hero  of  the 
Merrimac,  who  had  been  graduated  from  Annapolis  at 
the  head  of  his  class,  and  who  was  a  very  brilliant  man. 
I  recommended  that  a  board  try  it,  and  suggested  Ad- 


552     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

miral  Badger  as  its  head.  The  Secretary  asked  me  to  be 
the  head  of  the  board  instead.  I  was  very  glad  to  be 
at  the  head  of  the  board  because  I  was  more  interested  in 
naval  gunnery  than  in  anything  else,  and  thought  that  I 
knew  more  about  it  than  about  anything  else. 

Our  work  with  the  Isham  shell  lasted  a  year  and  a 
half.  It  was  finally  stopped  when  it  seemed  to  me  that 
the  main  difficulties  had  been  overcome.  I  think  the  div 
ing-shell  fired  against  submarines  later  was  virtually  the 
same  thing. 

For  several  days  my  entries  are  concerned  with  the 
Japanese  situation  in  the  Pacific,  the  war  in  Europe,  and 
indications  of  possible  anarchy  in  Mexico. 

Oct.  8.  Told  Sec.  we  need  5000  additional  enlisted  men  more 
than  we  need  an  additional  battleship.  Some  effect  made,  (I 
think). 

Oct.  16.  ...  Representative  A.  P.  Gardner  introduced  resolu 
tion  asking  for  Commission  to  inquire  into  preparedness  of 
Army  &  Navy. 

Oct.  18.  Representative  Gardner's  resolution  &  subsequent 
speech  do  not  seem  to  have  made  much  impression.  Senator 
Stone,  Chairman  Foreign  Relations  Committee,  made  inflamma 
tory  speech  regarding  searching '  of  U.  S.  Merchant  ships  by 
foreign  men  of  war,  &  making  German  reservists  on  board  parole 
themselves. 

During  the  middle  of  October  the  newspapers  devoted 
a  good  deal  of  space  to  Mr.  Gardner's  resolution  to  in 
quire  into  the  condition  of  the  national  defenses,  and 
many  of  them  published  favorable  editorials. 

Oct.  20.  Sec.  gave  out  statement  saying  Gen.  Staff  not  con 
sonant  with  principles  of  this  Republic!  Gosh! 

Oct.  23.  ...  I  have  told  Capt.  Smith  to  be  ready  to  act  as 
my  Asst.  &  to  get  himself  well  posted  on  our  war  plans.  Had 
meeting  in  my  office  with  my  "War  staff,"  composed  of  Capt. 
Roy  Smith,  Lt.  Comdrs.  Cronan  &  Madison  &  Lieut.  Leigh 
Noyes.  We  discussed  preparation  of  Dept  for  war,  &  "station 
bill"  of  officers  at  Dept  in  time  of  war.,  etc. 


Oct.  24.  ...  I  told  Asst.  Sec.  we  must  not  accept  any  "pallia 
tive"  for  present  situation,  but  insist  on  Gen.  Staff.  He  said 
he  would  agree  if  I  thought  there  was  any  chance  of  getting  it. 
I  told  him  I  thought  there  was  an  excellent  chance  if  we 
held  firm.  He  said  he  would  stop  trying  to  get  a  "palliative" 
&  would  try  to  get  Gen.  Staff. 

V  Oct.  26.  I  held  another  meeting  of  my  "War  staff"— Ad- 
miral  Knight  being  present  as  temporary  member.  ...  I  think 
I  shall  try  to  develop  a  real  &  practical  War  Plan,  by  which  we 
can  mobilize  if  war  comes  &  then  handle  our  forces. 

The  entries  in  my  diary  for  the  next  few  days  con 
cern  the  developments  of  the  war  and  points  in  interna 
tional  law.  I  was  brought  almost  daily  into  intimate  con 
ferences  with  Counsellor  Lansing  as  to  the  mutual  and  co 
ordinate  actions  of  the  State  and  Navy  departments.  I 
had  admired  Mr.  Moore  so  much  that  I  was  prepared  to 
find  in  Mr.  Lansing  a  rather  inferior  person.  But  I  soon 
discovered  that  Mr.  Lansing,  instead  of  being  an  inferior 
person,  was  a  man  of  great  ability,  perfect  courage,  and 
strict  integrity.  During  all  the  conferences  that  I  held 
with  him,  extending  over  more  than  a  year,  sometimes  in 
his  office  and  sometimes  in  mine,  we  never  disagreed  on  a 
single  point  except  once.  On  that  occasion  our  disagree 
ment  was  very  slight,  and  resulted  from  a  misunder 
standing  in  each  man  as  to  what  the  other  meant,  and  it 
was  immediately  cleared  up. 

Oct.  29.  ...  I  was  amazed  yesterday  to  get  an  official  letter 
signed  by  Chief  Bureau  Navigation,  saying  that  (showing  cer 
tain  figures),  we  could  cut  down  the  crews  of  certain  vessels  & 
stations  &  have  more  men  in  the  navy  than  are  needed! 
\  Before  this,  I  had  realized  that  he  and  the  Aid  for  Material 
were  siding  with  the  Secretary  against  me.  This  was  hard  to 
bear. 

Park  Benjamin's  article  on  my  invention  "The  Flying  Fish 
Torpedo"  for  discharging  torpedoes  from  aeroplanes,  with  a  fine 
full-page  illustration  has  come  out  in  The  Independent.  Had 
meeting  of  "My  War  Staff."  Discussed  Admiralty,  Esher, 
Moody,  Swift  organization  plans. 


554     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

Nov.  2.     Sec.  returned  &  was  most  cordial  and  delightful. 

Nov.  4.  ...  Naval  battle  off  Coast  of  Chile. — Victory  for 
Germans,  showing  apparently  better  strategy,  in  getting  more 
ships  there  than  British  had;  also  better  gunnery.  This  is  due, 
I  think,  to  precision  of  German  methods. 

During  the  time  that  had  elapsed  since  my  return  from 
the  war  college,  I  had  done  all  I  possibly  could  to  im- 
press  the  Secretary  with  the  fact  that  our  navy  was  not 
prepared  for  war  with  any  navy  like  the  German  Navy, 
and  that  there  was  an  actual  danger  of  our  being  drawn 
into  the  war ;  but  I  could  make  no  impression  on  him.  In 
my  efforts  I  was  backed  up  cordially  by  most  of  the  Gen 
eral  Board  and  by  most  of  the  officers  of  the  navy.  I  was 
continually  in  receipt  of  letters  and  oral  remarks  from 
officers,  in  which  they  praised  the  stand  I  was  taking 
and  urged  me  to  keep  it  up.  No  supporter  that  I  had 
was  abler,  more  loyal  or  more  energetic  than  Lieutenant- 
Commander  Cronan,  who  was  my  senior  assistant  in 
the  office,  or  Lieutenant-Commander  Madison,  or,  in  a 
somewhat  less  degree,  because  he  was  younger,  Lieu 
tenant  Leigh  Noyes.  My  senior  assistant  when  I  first 
became  aid  for  operations,  was  Lieutenant-Commander 
W.  C.  Watts,  a  man  of  splendid  ability  and  character,  but 
whose  service  with  me  was  not  in  such  difficult  times  as 
when  his  successor  Cronan  was  there.  When  the  time 
had  come  for  Watts  to  go  to  sea,  he  had  recommended 
Cronan  as  his  successor,  and  I  had  such  confidence  in 
Watts 's  judgment  that  I  accepted  his  advice. 

Toward  the  latter  part  of  October,  Cronan  advised  me 
to  put  into  an  official  paper  all  the  advice  and  recom 
mendations  as  to  preparedness  which  I  had  been  urging 
upon  the  Secretary,  and  to  file  the  paper  in  the  official 
records.  Cronan  said  that  we  were  going  to  get  into 
the  war  "as  sure  as  shooting,"  and  that  if  the  navy 
got  into  the  war  as  unprepared  as  it  was,  and  if  disaster 
followed,  everybody  would  put  the  blame  on  the  naval 
officers  who  happened  to  be  in  positions  of  responsibility 


THE  UNPREPAREDNESS  OF  THE  NAVY  555 

at  the  time  unless  the  truth  was  told  and  recorded  in  ad 
vance. 

I  took  Cronan 's  advice,  and  wrote  a  paper  very  care 
fully  on  the  uiipreparedness  of  the  navy.  I  showed  this 
letter  to  a  number  of  officers  in  order  that  I  might  have 
the  advantage  of  any  comments  or  criticism  they  might 
make.  In  regard  to  this  letter  I  find  the  following  para 
graph  in  my  entries  of  November  5  : 

I  showed  Sec.  a  paper  I  had  written  to  him,  stating  navy  is 
\    unprepared,   &   needs  more  men,   more   training  &   a   general 
staff.     He  made  almost  no  comment  on  my  paper,  though  he 
read  it  carefully. 

On  the  forenoon  of  November  5  Captain  Roy  Smith, 
who  was  an  unrecognized  first  assistant  to  me  (I  could  not 
get  a  recognized  assistant),  was  in  my  office  talking  over 
with  me  my  projected  plan  of  getting  the  Navy  Depart 
ment  on  a  war  basis,  when  Cronan  came  into  the  office 
with  the  last  draft  of  the  paper  I  had  written.  Smith 
was  already  familiar  with  it,  but  the  three  of  us  talked 
it  over  for  a  few  minutes,  and  then  I  took  it  into  the  Sec 
retary.  After  the  Secretary  had  read  the  letter,  he  re 
turned  it  to  me,  and  I  went  back  to  my  office.  Smith  and 
Cronan  were  still  there,  and  I  told  them  of  the  failure 
I  had  met.  Then  I  put  the  letter  on  my  desk,  saying 
that  I  intended  to  speak  to  the  Secretary  about  it  again. 
I  did  not  do  so,  however,  thinking  that  it  would  do  no 
good;  and  I  finally  filed  it.  The  date  the  paper  finally 
had  when  filed  was  November  9,  1914. 

I  have  written  many  papers  in  my  life.  This  paper 
was  the  most  important  one  I  have  ever  written.  It 
read  as  follows : 

NAVY  DEPARTMENT, 
Washington,  November  9, 1914. 
From :  Aid  for  Operations. 
To :  Secretary  of  the  Navy. 
Subject:  The  Navy's  unpreparedness  for  war. 

1.  I  bep,'  leave,  respectfully  but  urgently,  to  request  the  at- 


556     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

tention  of  the  Secretary  to  the  fact  that  the  United   States 
Navy  is  unprepared  for  war. 

2.  It  is  true  that  the  United  States  does  not  expect  to  get  into 
war  in  the  near  future,  and  is  not  preparing  for  war.     It  is 
true  that  nothing  could  be  more  unwise  than  for  the  country  or 
the  Navy  itself  to  become  nervous  about  the  condition  of  war 
into  which  most  of  the  civilized  world  has  been  plunged.     It  is 
true  that  there  is  no  cause  for  excitement,  and  it  is  also  true 
that  even  the  most  timid  person  can  give  no  specific  reason  for 
anticipating  war  with  any  given  country,  at  any  given  time. 

3.  It  is  also  true,  however,  that  the  mere  absence  of  actual  cer 
tainty  of  coming  war  is  no  reason  for  neglecting  preparation. 
Some  persons  assume  that  a  disposition  to  make  preparation  evi 
dences  a  state  of  alarm  in  the  mind  of  the  person  who  proposes 
to  make  preparation.     Yet  such  an  assumption  is  entirely  il 
logical.    Wise  men  and  wise  nations  show  their  wisdom  in  no 
better  way  than  by  taking  wise  precautions  against  possible 
dangers.     The  prevalence  of  smallpox  induces  wise  people  to 
guard  their  families  against  it  by  vaccination.     They  do  not 
expect  to  be  attacked  by  smallpox,  but  nevertheless  they  think 
it  wise  to  take  precautions  against  it. 

4.  Because  of  the  position  which  I  have  occupied  for  more 
than  a  year  and  a  half  as  senior  adviser  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Navy,  it  has  been  my  duty  to  keep  myself  informed,  so  far 
as  I  have  been  able,  of  the  condition  of  the  various  nations  in 
relation  to  war,  the  effects  of  that  condition  upon  us,  the  strength 
of  our  Navy  compared  with  other  navies,  and  the  degree  of 
probability  of  our  being  dragged  into  war. 

5.  The  present  condition  all  over  the  world  is  one  of  general 
upheaval.     The  state  of  unstable  equilibrium  which  the  great 
powers  maintained  for  many  years  with  great  skill  and  care  has 
been  at  last  upset.    A  conflict  is  going  on,  very  few  results  of 
which  can  be  foretold.     One  thing  probably  can  be  foretold, 
however.     I  mean  that  it  can  be  foretold  that  the  conflict  will 
be  violent  and  also  will  be  long,  involving  other  countries  than 
those  now  taking  part,  and  followed,   even  after  the  war  at 
present  outlined  has  been  ended,  by  a  series  of  more  or  less  violent 
readjustments  of  boundaries,  insular  possessions,  treaties,  and 
agreements  of  every  kind. 

6.  Surely  he  would  be  an  optimist  who  would  expect  that  a 
state  of  general  peace  will  come  in  less  than  five  years.     During 


Photo.  Harrfs  &  Ewing. 


MY  LETTER  OF  NOVEMBER  9,  1914   557 

the  next  five  years  we  must  expect  a  great  number  of  causes  of 
disagreement  between  this  country  and  other  countries,  and 
periods  of  tension  between  this  Government  and  others;  periods 
like  that  preceding  the  Spanish  War,  needing  only  a  casualty  like 
the  blowing  up  of  the  Maine  to  precipitate  a  conflict. 

7.  In  my  opinion,  as  your  professional  adviser,  and  in  the 
opinion  of  every  naval  officer  with  whom  I  have  talked,  the 
United  States  is  in  danger  of  being  drawn  into  war  and  will 
continue  to  be  in  danger  for  several  years.     And  when  I  say 
war,  I  do  not  mean  war  of  the  kind  that  we  had  with  Spain, 
but  war  with  a  great  power,  carried  on  in  the  same  ruthless  spirit 
and  in  the  same  wholesale  manner  as  that  which  pervades  the 
fighting  in  Europe  now.     It  is  true  that  I  can  not  specify  the 
country  with  which  war  is  most  probable,  nor  the  time,  nor  the 
cause.     But  my  studies  of  wars  in  the  past,  and  my  observa 
tions  of  conditions  at  the  present  time,  convince  me  that  if  this 
country  avoids  war  during  the  next  five  years  it  will  be  accom 
plished  only  by  a  happy  combination  of  high  diplomatic  skill  and 
rare  good  fortune. 

8.  Would  it  be  wise  to  base  all  our  hopes  of  national  safety 
on  such  a  frail  foundation?    Would  it  be  wise  to  close  our  eyes 
to  the  dangers  that  confront  us  ?     Would  it  not  be  wiser  to  look 
the  dangers  clearly  in  the  face  and  take  reasonable  precaution 
to  avert  them? 

9.  Comparing  our  Navy  with  the  navies  which  we  may  have  to 
meet  in  war,  I  find  that  our  Navy  is  unprepared  in  three  ways : 

10.  First,  it  has  an  insufficient  number  of  officers  and  enlisted 
men.     The  number  of  officers  can  not  be  increased — that  is,  the 
number  of  suitable  officers — because  it  takes  four  years  to  get  a 
midshipman  through  the  academy  and  several  years  afterwards 
to  train  him.     But  the  number  of  enlisted  men  can  be  increased, 
and  very  quickly.     It  has  been  said  that  in  time  of  war  we 
could  add  to  our  enlisted  personnel  from  the  Naval  Reserve 
and  the  Naval  Militia.     To  my  mind,  this  is  a  visionary  notion, 
with  no  basis  of  fact  to  rest  upon.     We  have  been  working  to 
get  a  naval  reserve  and  a  Naval  Militia  for  more  than  30  years ; 
scores  of  expedients  have  been  tried,  and  the  only  result  has 
been  no  naval  reserves  at  all  and  less  than  7,000  incompletely 
trained  militia.     Possibly  we  may   do  better  with  the   Naval 
Reserve  in  the  future  than  in  the  past,  but  only  possibly,  not 
probably.     All  reasonable  expectation  for  the  future  is  based, 


558     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIRAL 

and  must  be  based,  on  the  experience  of  the  past,  and  the  experi 
ence  of  the  past  shows  us  that  to  place  dependence  on  the  Naval 
Militia  and  the  Naval  Reserve  is  to  place  dependence  on  hope, 
not  reasonable  expectation.  The  only  men  we  can  depend  upon 
for  naval  work  on  board  our  ships  are  men  who  are  enlisted 
regularly,  who  have  been  trained  on  board  our  ships,  and  wear 
the  naval  uniform.  But  even  if  we  would  expect  reasonably  to 
get  a  naval  reserve  in  the  future,  the  fact  remains  that  we  want 
enlisted  men  right  now.  To  man  the  ships  which  should  be  used 
in  war  we  need  19,600  more  men. 

11.  The  second  way  in  which  I  find  our  Navy  unprepared  is 
in   departmental   organization.     Our  ships   are  well  organized 
and  pretty  well  drilled;  the  fleets  are  well  organized,  though 
not  very  well  drilled,  but  the  department  itself  is  neither  organ 
ized  nor  drilled  in  a  military  way.     Perhaps  this  is  nobody's 
fault,  and  may  be  attributed  to  the  fact  that  our  Navy  has 
never  had  to  fight  a  serious  enemy — certainly  not  in  100  years. 
The  people  of  the  country  have  naturally  devoted  their  energy 
along  the  paths  of  most  obvious  profit,  and  have  not  been  con 
fronted  with  any  obvious  military  dangers.     But  in  my  opinion 
there  is  an  obvious  military  danger  at  present,  and  the  Navy  De 
partment   should   be   organized  to   meet   it.     The   organization 
which  other  navies  and  all  armies  of  great  powers  employ  to  meet 
this  danger  is  known,  in  English,  by  the  phrase  ' '  general  staff. ' ' 
In  different  languages,  of  course,  the  words  are  different ;  but  the 
meaning  is  the  same.     In  Great  Britain  it  is  called  the  "Board 
of  Admiralty."     This   "general   staff"   has   as   its   first   duty 
preparation  for  war ;  and  as  its  second  duty,  the  conduct  of  war 
when  war  comes.     In  making  preparation  for  war,  the  "general 
staff"  makes  war  plans.     These  war  plans  are  of  two  kinds, 
general  and  specific.     The  general  plans  are  simply  analyses  of 
what  should  be  the  general  conduct  of  the  Navy  in  case  of  war; 
and  the  specific  plans  are  plans  in  which  the  general  plans  are 
worked  out  in  detail.     Besides  these  general  and  specific  plans, 
however,  the  "general  staff"  devises  means  whereby  informa 
tion  regarding  these  general  and  specific  plans  shall  be  given  to 
the  various  executive  bureaus  and  divisions,  corrected  up  to  date ; 
and  whereby  the  various  executive  bureaus  and  visions  shall  al 
ways  be  compelled  to  be  ready  to  carry  the  various  parts  of 
those  plans  into  immediate  effect. 

12.  In  directing  the  conduct  of  a  war,  the  "general  staff," 


MY  LETTER  OF  NOVEMBER  9,  1914   559 

under  the  direction  of  the  minister,  sees  to  it  that  all  informa 
tion  is  kept  up  to  date  and  supplied  to  the  various  commanders, 
and  that  all  machinery  for  carrying  out  their  decisions  is  kept 
in  working  order. 

13.  Our  Navy  Department  has  no  machinery  for  doing  what  a 
"general  staff"  does.     The  closest  approach  to  it  is  the  General 
Board,  which,  as  part  of  its  numerous  duties,   "shall  devise 
measures  and  plans  for  the  effective  preparation  and  maintenance 
of  the  fleet  for  war,"  and  "shall  prepare  and  submit  to  the 
Secretary  of  the  Navy  plans  of  campaign,"  etc.     The  General 
Board  does  carry  out  these  duties,  but  the  plans  that  it  makes 
are  general  and  elementary.     It  exists  entirely  as  an  advisory 
board  to  the   Secretary  of  the  Navy.     It  is  highly  valuable; 
but,  as  its  name  indicates,  it  is  only  a  "General  Board."     It 
does  hardly  1  per  cent  of  the  duties  that  a  "general  staff" 
would  do.     Having  no  executive  authority  and  no  responsibility, 
and  being  called  upon  to  do  a  great  variety  of  work,  it  has  not 
the  time  to  prepare  specific  plans,  and  has  no  means  to  see  that 
even  its  general  plans  are  ever  carrier!  out.     If  we  compare  our 
General  Board  with  the  "general  staff"  of  any  other  country, 
or  with  the  Admiralty  of  Great  Britain,  and  when  we  see  what 
those  "general  staffs"  have  been  accomplishing  during  the  past 
three  months,  we  must  become  convinced  that  unless  we  go  on 
the  theory  that  we  shall  always  have  peace  we  shall  be  whipped 
if  we  ever  are  brought  into  war  with  any  one  of  the  great  naval 
powers  of  Europe  or  Asia.    We  shall  be  like  the  lawyer  who  has 
not  prepared  his  case  when  pitted  against  the  lawyer  who  has 
prepared  his  case.     We  shall  be  as  the  French  were  before  the 
Germans  in  1870. 

14.  The  performance  of  the  German  Army  during  the  last 
three  months  is  the  greatest  triumph  of  the  human  mind  and 
the  human  will  that  has  ever  been  accomplished.     It  is  not  the 
triumph  of  one  mind  or  one  will,  but  the  triumph  of  several 
million  minds  and  several  million  wills,  coordinated  by  a  general 
staff  with  a  degree  of  perfection  that  the  world  has  never  be 
fore  seen.     This  pace  being  set,  any  navy  not  provided  with  a 
"general  staff"  is  a  navy  not  provided  with  "the  most  modern 
improvements. ' ' 

15.  The  third  way  in  which  I  find  our  Navy  deficient  is  in 
training.     This  deficiency  in  training  is  due  not  to  lack  of  spirit 
or  ability  but  to  a  combination  of  the  two  preceding  causes ;  that 


560     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

is,  to  insufficient  personnel  and  lack  of  departmental  organiza 
tion,  to  which  must  be  added  lack  of  small  ships.  I  mean  that 
because  we  have  had  not  enough  small  ships  to  do  work  on  the 
coasts  of  Haiti,  San  Domingo,  and  Mexico,  because  our  ships 
have  been  insufficiently  manned,  and  because  the  Navy  Depart 
ment  has  had  no  "general  staff"  which  would  devise  and  carry 
out  a  progressive  system  of  training,  lack  of  progressive  train 
ing  has  resulted.  When  I  say  lack  of  progressive  training  I  mean 
lack  of  training  such  as  the  Germans  and  other  nations  have. 
I  mean  lack  of  training  that  secures  a  high  degree  of  skill.  If 
we  are  forced  into  war  with  a  navy  like  Germany 's  or  England 's 
or  Japan's,  our  training  should  be  at  least  as  good  as  theirs; 
or  rather  our  skill  should  be.  It  is  impossible  for  me  or  for 
anybody  to  compare  exactly  the.  skill  of  our  Navy  with  the  skill 
of  other  navies;  but,  on  the  theory  that  cause  produces  effect, 
we  must  admit  that  we  have  not  had  nearly  so  good  a  system 
to  produce  skill  as  other  navies  have.  The  developing  of  skill 
in  the  navies  and  armies  of  the  other  great  powers  is  carried  out 
with  a  vigor  and  persistency  that  we  can  not  approach,  and  has 
been  directed  by  an  organized  intelligence  that  certainly  has 
no  superior  and  probably  no  equal  in  any  other  branch  of 
human  effort. 

16.  The  subject  of  the  improper  organization  of  our  Navy 
Department  was  exhaustively  analyzed  by  the  Moody  Board  and 
afterwards  by  the  Swift  Board  in  1909.  Certain  recommenda 
tions  were  made  to  remedy  the  evils  that  they  found.  These 
recommendations  have  not  been  carried  out.  They  were,  in 
effect,  to  establish  a  ' '  general  staff, ' '  though  the  words  ' '  general 
staff"  were  not  used.  In  my  opinion,  the  failure  to  adopt  those 
recommendations  was  serious,  and  will  invite  disaster  if  a  great 
war  comes. 

B.  A.  FISKE. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI 

TESTIMONY  BEFORE  CONGRESS  AND   CHIEF  OF  NAVAL 
OPERATIONS 

THE  entries  in  my  diary  for  the  month  of  November 
are  concerned  mostly  with  endeavors  to  induce  the 
Secretary  to  ask  Congress  to  ask  for  more  enlisted  men 
for  the  navy.  My  main  point  was  that  the  navies  of 
Europe  were  the  navies  of  military  countries,  and  in 
cluded  large  reserves  of  seamen  who  had  served  in  the 
navy  and  were  very  well  trained ;  whereas  we  had  no  re 
serves  whatever  that  were  worthy  of  the  name.  I  talked 
to  him  a  great  deal  about  the  necessity  for  skill  in  the 
enlisted  men,  and  showed  that,  no  matter  how  good  a  gun 
a  man  might  fire,  that  gun  could  do  no  service  unless  its 
projectile  hit  the  target,  etc.  I  pointed  out  that  even 
trained  reserves  could  not  be  as  good  as  regulars,  and  I 
illustrated  this  by  the  German  naval  victory  off  the  coast 
of  Chile,  in  which  the  German  ships  were  manned  by 
regulars  and  the  British  by  reserve  crews.  My  entries 
show  that  I  had  almost  daily  talks  with  the  Secretary  on 
this  matter,  but  could  make  no  impression. 

Under  date  of  November  14  were  many  entries  from 
which  I  will  quote  one  as  showing  the  general  character 
of  the  entries  in  my  diary  during  this  period : 

Nov.  14.  ...  Sec.  'and  I  had  a  very  free  and  frank  talk. 
Interview  ended  with  my  agreeing  to  return  their  letter  to  Gen. 
Board;  suggesting  Board  omit  any  mention  of  19,600  more 
men. 

Nov.  15.  Sunday.  Admiral  A.  T.  Mahan  in  church  this 
morning.  Looked  well,  but  -a  little  older.  He  joined  in  all  the 
singing. 

Nov.   16.     Going  down  to  the  Fleet  this  evening  with  the 

561 


562     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

officers  of  the  Target  Practice  office,  to  see  the  target  practice 
of  the  Fleet. 

Nov.  23.  Returned  from  the  Fleet  this  morning.  The  target 
practice  was  very  much  obstructed  &  delayed  by  thick  weather. 
What  was  done  did  not  seem  particularly  good.  And  the 
maneuvers  were  not  very  skilfully  performed.  Lack  of  prac 
tice  was  evident  throughout.  And  there  were  only  11  bat 
tleships  &  12  destroyers  present;  no  submarines.  This  is  the 
unfortunate  result  of  our  Mexican  policy. 

Nov.  27.  British  battleship  Bulwark  sunk  in  Thames  River. 
This  seems  incredible.  My  guess  is  that  it  was  done  by  a 
submarine.  .  .  .  Sec.  Nav.  is  against  any  increase  of  enlisted 
personnel!  A  movement  is  started  by  prominent  men  in  N.  Y. 
to  support  Repr.  Gardner,  &  investigate  state  of  national  de 
fenses  ! ! ! 

Nov.  28.  U.  S.  Safety  League  is  formed  in  Chicago!  Taft, 
Miles,  Goethals,  etc.,  are  members. 

The  entries  in  my  diary  for  several  days  deal  with  my 
endeavors  to  get  more  enlisted  men  for  the  navy  and  to 
prevent  battle-ships  being  sent  into  the  Pacific. 

Dec.  2.  Continued  agitation  in  papers  concerning  our  un- 
preparedness.  .  .  .  Adm.  A.  T.  Mahan  died  yesterday  of  heart 
disease. 

Dec.  3.  ...  I  am  liable  to  be  bounced  any  day.  This  issue 
as  to  whether  or  not  we  have  enough  men  to  man  the  fleet  we 
would  use  in  war,  is  a  most  serious  issue. 

Dec.  7.  ...  Adm.  Fletcher  arrived,  in  obedience  to  orders,  to 
testify  before  House  Naval  Committee  tomorrow.  Badger  also 
is  to  testify.  I  am  quite  sure  Sec.  does  not  wish  me  to  appear 
or  testify.  In  See's  annual  report,  he  says  navy  does  not  need 
any  more  men,  or  at  least  can  get  along  without  them,  and  he 
will  not  ask  for  them.  He  prints  G.  B.  report,  but  does  not 
say  that  he  told  Gen.  Bd.  he  would  npt  print  it  unless  G.  B. 
left  out  the  part  asking  for  more  men.  (/The  Sec 's  report  is  abso 
lutely  the  reverse  in  its  character,  of  my  report  to  him,  made  only 
three  weeks  before ;  and  yet  I  am  his  military  adviser !  One  head 
line  is  "Proof  of  the  Preparedness  of  the  Navy."  (Page  52.J/ 

Dec.  8  and  9.  Badger  &  Fletcher  have  testified  before  the 
House  Naval  Committee.  Committee  on  Rules  refused  Mr. 
Gardner's  request  to  summon  officers  and  others  before  it. 


TESTIMONY  BEFORE  CONGRESS          563 

Dec.  10.  Adm.  Fletcher  was  before  the  House  Naval  Com 
mittee  nearly  all  day  yesterday.  He  brought  out  many  naval 
needs,  but  I  think  he  made  the  Personnel  situation  too  rosy.  I 
am  disappointed  at  neutralness  and  colorlessness  of  testimony 
of  Badger. 

Dec.  11.     Sec.  was  before  Committee  yesterday. 

My  entry  under  this  date  makes  many  comments  on  his 
testimony. 

Dec.  12.     Sec.  was  before  Naval  Committee  of  House  nearly 
all  day  yesterday.     Commander  Yates  Stirling,  comdr.  of  sub 
marine  Flotilla  arrived  at  Dept.  having  rec'd.  orders  to  testify 
before  Naval  Committee  as  to  causes,  etc.,  of  submarine  failures. 
.  .  .  Fletcher  tells  me  that — in  a  talk  he  had  with  Sec.  this 
s.     a.  m., — Sec.  said  he  expected  to  send  fleet  into  Pacific,  &  keep 
V  it  there  nearly  all  of  1915 !!! 

"Dec.  15.  ...  Commdr.  Yates  Stirling  was  before  House 
Naval  Committee  yesterday.  Asst.  Sec.  Roosevelt  goes  today. 
He  was  in  my  office  two  hours  yesterday,  getting  data,  etc.,  etc., 
etc.  Sec.  is  very  much  provoked  against  Yates  Stirling,  &  has 
called  for  all  papers  that  passed  between  Dept.  and  subr. 
flotilla  in  last  year  or  so. 

>^  I  was  exceedingly  disturbed  by  the  character  of  the 
testimony  given  to  the  House  Naval  Committee  by 
various  officials  of  the  Navy  Department.  I  was  exceed 
ingly  unhappy.  Sometimes  I  had  the  feeling  which  I  had 
so  often  when  I  was  urging  the  adoption  of  the  telescope 
sight — that  I  must  be  somewhat  insane.  Most  of  the  de 
partment  officials  looked  at  matters  very  differently  from 
the  way  that  I  did,  and  each  touched  so  lightly  on  any  de 
fects  that  the  combined  effect  of  all  was  to  give  the  im 
pression  to  Congress,  and  therefore  to  the  nation,  that 
the  navy  was  in  a  high  state  of  preparedness.  As  I 
knew  that,  although  the  separate  parts  of  the  naval  ma 
chine  (ships,  guns,  men,  etc.),  were  good,  yet  that  those 
separate  parts  had  not  been  so  put  together  as  to  make 
an  efficient  machine,  I  determined,  at  all  costs  to  me  per 
sonally,  to  get  the  real  truth  before  the  nation  if  I  could. 
I  was  convinced  by  this  time  that  the  Secretary  did  not 


564     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAB-ADMIEAL 

want  me  to  testify  before  the  committee ;  and  yet  I  was, 
ex-officio  and  actually,  the  man  best  fitted  to  tell  Congress 
what  was  the  real  condition  of  the  United  States  Navy 
compared  with  other  navies.  I  knew  that  an  emergency 
existed  for  the  navy,  that  the  United  States  was  going  to 
get  into  the  war,  and  that  time  and  opportunity  were  be 
ing  wasted  which  could  never  be  redeemed.  I  could  not 
see  for  a  long  while  how  I  was  to  get  my  views  abroad. 
Finally,  on  the  morning  of  December  16,  while  shivering 
in  my  bathtub,  a  beautiful  idea  occurred  to  me. 
My  diary  says : 

Dec.  16.  I  suggested  to  Hobson  over  phone  this  a.  m.  that 
— if  he  wanted  to  get  straight  news  about  the  Army,  he  would 
get  Committee  to  call  for  Ch.  Gen.  Staff.  Hobson  answered, 
"A  word  to  the  wise  is  sufficient,"  so  I  got  word  tonight  to  ap 
pear  before  Committee  tomorrow. 

I  spent  that  evening  in  my  office  with  Lieutenant-Com 
mander  Madison,  who  was  the  officer  on  duty  there  that 
evening.  We  discussed  the  subject  of  my  testimony,  and 
collected  some  papers  which  I  could  use  to  refresh  my 
memory.  Madison  and  I  agreed  that  the  navy  could 
not  be  got  into  the  same  state  of  efficiency  as  the  German 
Navy  for  many  years.  I  told  Madison  that  I  wanted  to 
bring  out  that  point  very  strongly,  and  we  discussed  what 
number  of  years  I  should  state  as  the  time  required, 
knowing,  as  we  both  did,  that  it  was  a  matter  of  doubt 
whether  the  political  influences  in  the  United  States  would 
ever  permit  the  navy  to  be  as  efficient  as  the  German,  and 
realizing  that  even  if  the  politicians  should  all  stand 
aside  and  permit  a  general  staff  to  be  established,  it 
would  probably  take  that  general  staff  at  least  ten  years 
to  train  itself  and  train  the  navy.  We  finally  decided 
that  I  should  say  that  it  would  take  at  least  five  years  to 
get  the  navy  ready  to  fight  a  navy  like  the  German,  ef 
fectively. 

My  diary  says: 


Photo,  Harris  &  Ewing 


CAPTAIN  ZACHARIAH  H.  MADISON 


TESTIMONY  BEFORE  CONGRESS  565 

Dec.  17.  ...  I  was  before  Committee  at  Hobson's  request 
nearly  all  day  to  day,  &  never  received  more  courteous  treat 
ment  &  more  attention  in  my  life — much  to  my  surprise !  I 
certainly  startled  Committee  when  I  told  them  it  would  take  5 
years  to  get  ready!  Congressman  Roberts  took  me  to  lunch 
in  Capitol  restaurant  &  I  asked  him  to  ask  me  how  long  it  would 
take  to  get  navy  ready  for  war  &  I  told  him,  I  would  answer 
5  years.  Roberts  took  the  hint. 

The  Washington  evening  papers  published  most  of  my 
testimony,  and  I  got  several  congratulatory  messages 
over  the  telephone  that  evening.  The  first  message  I  re 
ceived  was  from  my  old  classmate  and  roommate  Dorn, 
who  said  that  my  action  was  the  most  splendid  thing  that 
had  been  done  by  any  naval  officer  since  the  Civil  War. 

On  my  walk  down  to  the  department  the  following 
morning  numbers  of  navy  officers,  and  army  officers  as 
well,  came  up  to  shake  hands  with  me  and  thank  me.  I 
got  to  my  office  at  nine  o  'clock,  and  found  several  officers 
waiting  for  me.  All  were  most  enthusiastic,  and  each  one 
thanked  me  as  if  I  had  done  him  a  personal  favor. 
About  a  quarter  after  nine  the  Secretary's  messenger 
came  in  and  said  the  Secretary  wanted  to  see  me.  All  the 
officers  became  grave  at  once,  and  some  of  them  said,  "He 
is  going  to  fire  you."  They  all  seemed  to  think  this, 
and  I  know  I  did.  I  expected  to  be  sent  to  some  distant 
place  like  Olongapo  in  the  Philippines. 

I  walked  into  the  Secretary's  office,  and  saw  him  sit 
ting  at  his  desk,  with  the  palms  of  his  hands  downward 
on  the  table.  He  was  very  pale.  I  said,  "Good  morn 
ing,  Mr.  Secretary."  He  answered,  "Good  morning,  Ad- 
miral."  Then  he  looked  at  me  fixedly  for  a  few  seconds, 
then  spoke  to  me  about  some  unimportant  matter,  and 
then  I  went  out.  When  I  reached  my  office  I  found  the 
officers  still  there,  waiting  for  my  return  in  suppressed 
excitement.  When  I  told  them  that  nothing  had  hap 
pened,  they  all  expressed  their  gratification,  and  dis 
persed  to  their  various  offices. 


566     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Dec.  21.  My  testimony  has  received  very  great  approval 
everywhere.  N.  Y.  World — Dec.  19  &  20,  publishes  editorials 
saying  my  testimony  is  the  "most  helpful"  thing  that  has 
happened,  &  that  I — alone — show  the  way  to  have  good  navy 
—by  Gen.  Staff.  Sec.  Daniels  is  polite  and  suave.  He  has  said 
nothing,  except  to  ask  to  see  my  testimony.  I  handed  it  to 
him  today.  I  have  been  much  surprised  and  pleased  at  the 
number  of  congratulatory  letters,  phone  messages  and  oral 
statements  &  calls  at  my  office,  that  I  have  received; — mostly 
from  officers,  but  from  others — even  ladies!  Col.  Thompson 
came  in  to  my  office  &  was  most  flattering  &  kind  in  his  con 
gratulations.  Gardner  was  the  first  man  to  start  Preparedness 
publicly;  I  think  I  am  the  second. 

The  part  of  my  testimony  that  attracted  the  most  at 
tention  was  that  which  concerned  the  necessity  for  pre 
paring  immediately,  the  need  for  a  general  staff,  the  im 
possibility  of  expanding  a  navy  quickly  and  at  the  same 
time  preserving  its  efficiency,  and  the  necessity  for  years 
of  training  to  make  our  navy  as  efficient  as  the  German 
navy,  with  its  thousands  of  trained  and  skilled  reserves. 

But  I  took  advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  endeavor 
to  impress  the  committee  with  the  necessity  of  develop 
ing  aeronautics  for  offensive  use.  My  examination  in 
the  matter  of  aeroplanes  took  up  several  pages  in  the 
printed  report.  I  will  make  one  quotation : 

Admiral  Fiske.  The  aeroplanes  which  were  used  in  Mexico 
could  just  as  well  have  taken  bombs  and  attacked  Vera  Cruz 
or  Tampico  with  bombs.  And  so  we  must  look  forward  to  the 
possibility  of  that  kind  of  an  attack  on  our  own  coast ;  we  must 
consider  the  possibility  of  a  fleet,  without  the  assistance  of  any 
soldiers,  attacking  our  shores  in  that  way.  Warships  can  carry 
aerial  craft  of  that  kind,  aeroplanes,  certainly;  whether  air 
ships  or  not  we  do  not  know,  but  we  have  got  to  be  prepared 
to  meet  such  an  attack.  I  think  in  such  a  case  there  is  no 
question  that  they  could  send  their  aeroplanes — in  case  of  a 
defeat  of  our  fleet — they  could  send  their  aeroplanes  over  the 
land  and  make  an  attack,  and  possibly  an  effective  attack,  with 
out  any  soldiers,  on  a  city  or  other  locality. 


TESTIMONY  BEFORE  CONGRESS          567 

This  was  an  entirely  new  idea  in  warfare,  but  it  was 
carried  out  exactly  a  week  from  that  day  in  the  North 
Sea.  British  cruisers  carried  sea-planes  to  the  neighbor 
hood  of  Cuxhaven,  near  the  end  of  the  Kiel  Canal,  and 
lowered  the  sea-planes  into  the  wrater.  Then  the  sea 
planes  flew  over  the  enemy  works  in  the  neighborhood 
and  dropped  bombs  on  them. 

The  entries  in  my  diary  during  the  remainder  of  De 
cember  refer  mainly  to  the  congratulatory  letters  and 
messages  that  I  continued  to  receive  regarding  my  testi 
mony,  and  also  to  my  efforts  to  establish  a  general  staff. 

Dec.  27.  Sunday.  Called  on  Hobson  in  p.  m.  and  explained 
why  a  Gen.  Staff  is  absolutely  essential,  if  one  is  to  have  a  navy 
of  maximum  effectiveness;  though  it  is  not  necessary  if  one  is 
to  have  merely  a  navy. 

Jan.  3.  Sunday.  Had  long  interview  in  p.  m.  with  Hobson 
at  his  residence,  in  regard  to  Gen.  Staff,  etc.  I  took  many  docu 
ments  with  me,  &  Hobson  became  thoroughly  interested.  We 
concluded  that  it  might  be  better  not  to  attempt  to  get  through 
legislation  for  any  modification  of  Aid  system,  because  Sec.  would 
say  present  Aid  system  is  adequate  &  that  it  might  be  better 
to  propose  a  new  scheme,  whereby  an  addition  would  be  made 
to  present  system  &  additional  means  be  provided  to  accomplish 
preparation  for  war.  So  I  asked  Capts.  H.  S.  Knapp,  Hood  & 
Oliver,  &  Lt.  Comdrs.  Cronan,  Madison  &  Knox  to  be  at  Hob- 
son's  at  8.30  p.  m.  We  all  met  there  in  Hobson 's  study,  & 
sat  till  after  11  p.  m.  when  we  adjourned.  We  agreed  on 
program  whereby  Chief  of  Naval  Operations  is  to  be  legislated 
for  &  to  have  15  assts ! ! 

The  entries  under  head  of  December  27  and  January 
3  give  the  outlines  of  a  good  deal  of  work  that  Hobson 
and  I  did  on  those  days  and  in  the  intervening  week. 
The  plan  which  we  drew  up  was  drawn  up  in  the  light 
of  my  knowledge  of  strategical  requirements  and  Hob- 
son's  knowledge  of  congressional  requirements.  When 
the  six  officers  arrived  that  evening,  they  came  secretly 
because  they  were  engaged  on  an  exceedingly  dangerous 
mission.  I  had  expected  more  or  less  objection  on  the 


568     FJROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAB-ADMIEAL 

part  of  some  of  them  to  certain  features  of  the  bill  as 
drawn,  but  I  found  that  every  one  of  them  was  enthusi 
astically  in  favor  of  it.  We  eight  men  went  over  the 
whole  subject  very  carefully,  and  when  we  finally  came 
to  an  agreement,  the  original  memorandum  that  Hobson 
and  I  had  planned  had  been  changed  but  little. 

During  the  discussion  that  evening  it  happened  occa 
sionally  that  some  one  would  speak  of  the  power  and  au 
thority  which  I  would  have  if  that  bill  should  pass. 
Whenever  anybody  made  such  a  remark  as  that,  I  told 
him  that,  if  Congress  should  authorize  a  chief  of  naval 
operations,  I  was  absolutely  certain  that  I  would  not  be 
the  chief  of  naval  operations.  I  told  them  that  I  was 
positive  that  the  secretary  wanted  to  get  rid  of  me,  but 
could  see  no  opportunity  or  give  any  reason  for  it,  be 
cause  he  knew  that  I  was  performing  my  duties  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  navy,  including  Admiral  Dewey;  but 
that  if  a  new  office  was  established  by  Congress,  the  secre 
tary  then  would  be  perfectly  free  to  appoint  any  one 
whom  he  wished.  I  told  the  company  that  I  was  like  the 
well-known  gentleman  who  sawed  off  a  branch  of  a  tree 
at  a  point  between  himself  and  the  branch,  except  that 
that  man  did  not  realize  what  he  was  doing,  and  I  did. 

Jan.  4.  The  6  officers  who  met  at  Hobson 's  last  night  met 
in  my  office  at  8.30  a.  m.  &  we  drew  up  on  neat  typewritten  page 
the  proposition  agreed  on.  Hobson  came  to  my  office  at  10.15 
&  took  up  the  matter  with  Sec.  Hobson  told  me  later  that  Sec. 
declared  that  if  the  bill  went  through  he  would  "go  home." 
How  foolish!  Now  he  has  the  chance  to  back  it  up  &  get 
back  into  good  opinion  of  the  country.  Hobson  came  to  our 
apartment  at  2.20  &  told  me  sub-committee — of  which  Padgett  is 
chairman — passed  the  proposition  unanimously!  Hobson  asked 
me  to  get  him  a  brief  with  which  to  argue  matter  before  full 
committee  Jan.  5.  So  Madison,  Cronan,  Dudley  Knox  &  I 
met  in  my  office  from  9  p.  m.  till  11.15  p.  m.  &  drew  up  brief, 
which  Knox  will  leave  at  Hobson 's  house  at  9  a.  m.  tomorrow. 

Jan.  5.  Papers  give  large  space  &  headlines  to  action  of 
sub-committee!  Dewey  is  delighted,  &  told  me  I  might  tell 
Hobson,  which  I  did  at  10.30  a.  m.  by  telephone. 


TESTIMONY  BEFORE  CONGRESS          569 

Jan.  6.  Hobson  telephoned  me  at  1  p.  m.  that  full  House 
Naval  Committee  agreed  unanimously  on  incorporating  in  naval 
appropriation  bill  the  provisions  for  a  "Chief  of  Naval  Opera 
tions"!! 

With  the  exception  of  Admiral  Dewey,  Hobson,  and  the 
six  other  officers,  nobody  knew  that  I  or  any  other  naval 
officer  had  any  connection  with  this  measure. 

Jan.  7.  Evening  papers  last  night  and  morning  papers  today 
confirm  news  that  House  Naval  committee  unanimously  agreed 
to  incorporate  in  Naval  appropriation  bill  the  provision,  ' '  There 
shall  be  a  Chief  of  Naval  Operations."  .  .  .  New  York  papers 
give  great  space  &  comment  (sympathetic)  to  establishment — 
Bureau  of  Operation.  N.  Y.  Tribune  is  especially  favorable) 
and  the  World — the  leading  democratic  newspaper,  gives  the 
project  its  first  column  of  first  page,  headed  "Fixed  Naval 
Policy  Assured."  It  must  hurt  Mr.  Daniels  very  much  indeed 
to  see  the  World  taking  a  stand  so  antagonistic  to  him. 

When  the  Naval  Appropriation  Bill  came  up  before  the 
House,  the  provision  for  a  chief  of  naval  operations  was 
stricken  out  on  a  point  of  order,  on  the  motion  by  Mr. 
Mann.  This  did  not  surprise  us  because  Hobson  had 
said  at  the  start  that  it  was  liable  to  this  fate,  being  new 
legislation  added  to  an  appropriation  bill.  Hobson  said 
that  he  thought  he  could  get  the  Senate  Naval  Committee 
to  put  it  back  in  the  bill;  he  added,  however,  that  this 
would  give  an  opportunity  for  the  Secretary  to  modify 
the  provision  by  recommending  certain  changes  in  it, 
though  he  thought  that  the  Secretary  would  not  oppose  a 
provision  that  had  been  agreed  to  by  the  full  House  com 
mittee. 

Hobson 's  prediction  was  verified  in  toto.  The  pro 
vision,  as  finally  incorporated  in  the  bill  by  the  Senate 
Naval  Committee,  was  made  to  conform  to  the  sugges 
tions  of  the  Secretary.  In  its  amended  form  it  was 
passed  by  both  houses.  It  established  the  office  of  chief 
of  naval  operations  in  a  form  which,  though  it  omitted 
\  the  fifteen  assistants  for  making  war  plans  which  Hob- 


570     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

son  and  I  had  suggested,  accomplished  nevertheless  a 
greater  advance  than  any  other  naval  legislation  had  ac 
complished  in  many  years.  Most  officers  said  that  it  was 
as  great  a  boon  to  the  navy  as  the  act  of  Congress,  in 
1880,  which  authorized  the  "new  navy"  in  the  shape  of 
the  steel  ships  Chicago,  Atlanta,  Boston,  and  Dolphin. 

On  March  24  and  26,  1916,  I  testified  again  before  the 
House  Naval  Committee,  and  made  the  strongest  argu 
ment  I  could  in  favor  of  putting  back  into  the  appropria 
tion  bill  the  provision  for  fifteen  assistants  for  making 
war  plans  which  had  been  left  out  in  1914.  The  sub 
committee  of  the  naval  committee  agreed  to  do  this. 
When  the  matter  came  up  before  the  full  naval  com 
mittee,  the  committee  divided  half  in  half,  most  of  the 
Eepublicans  voting  yes,  and  most  of  the  Democrats  no. 
As  the  subcommittee  had  recommended  it,  and  the  full 
committee  had  not  rejected  it,  the  full  committee  had  to 
pass  it,  though  half  of  them  opposed  it. 

This  is  the  organization  by  which  the  Navy  Depart 
ment  handled  the  navy  throughout  the  war.  The  excel 
lence  of  the  system  is  now  admitted  by  everybody,  in 
cluding  the  Secretary. 

The  appropriation  bill,  as  finally  passed,  contained  the 
provision  for  the  fifteen  assistants  to  the  chief  of  naval 
operations  that  had  been  omitted  from  the  previous  bill, 
after  having  been  included  in  the  original  draft  of  the 
House  Naval  Committee  in  the  session  previous. 

The  language  of  the  bill  is : 

Hereafter  the  Chief  of  Naval  Operations,  while  so  serving  as 
such  Chief  of  Naval  Operations,  shall  have  the  rank  and  title 
of  admiral,  to  take  rank  next  after  The  Admiral  of  the  Navy, 
and  shall  while  so  serving  as  Chief  of  Naval  Operations,  receive 
the  pay  of  $10,000  per  annum  and  no  allowances.  All  orders 
issued  by  the  Chief  of  Naval  Operations  in  performing  the  duties 
assigned  him  shall  be  performed  under  the  authority  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Navy,  and  his  orders  shall  be  considered  as 
emanating  from  the  Secretary,  and  shall  have  full  force  and 
effect  as  such.  To  assist  the  Chief  of  Naval  Operations  in  per- 


TESTIMONY  BEFORE  CONGRESS          571 

forming  the  duties  of  his  office  there  shall  be  assigned  for  this 
exclusive  duty  no  less  than  fifteen  officers  of  and  above  the 
rank  of  lieutenant  commander  of  the  Navy  or  major  of  the 
Marine  Corps. 

The  office  of  naval  operations  with  the  fifteen  assistants 
"assigned  for  this  exclusive  duty"  constitutes  a  general 
staff. 

Before  I  gave  my  first  testimony,  the  personal  rela 
tions  between  the  Secretary  and  me  had  been  friendly  and 
pleasant,  though  we  disagreed  entirely  as  to  the  desira 
bility  of  getting  the  navy  ready  for  war.  Our  disagree 
ment  on  this  point  was  extremely  trying  to  me,  for  the 
N^  reason  that  I  liked  the  Secretary  so  much  as  a  man.  I 
appreciated  his  kindness  of  heart  and  his  delicate  refine 
ment.  I  admired  his  steadfast  adherence  to  the  princi 
ples  of  Christian  conduct  which  he  professed,  and  I  was 
continually  tempted  to  cease  from  urging  him  to  under 
take  a  course  of  conduct  against  which  he  was  resolved. 
But  I  often  told  him  that  I  was  the  only  man  in  ninety 
million  people  to  hold  before  him  the  military  side  of  the 
navy,  and  that  I  felt  it  my  duty  to  persist.  He  always 
told  me  that  I  was  right  in  so  doing,  and  for  a  long  while 
I  thought  that  I  was  gradually  impressing  him  with  our 
dangers. 

But  his  report  of  December  1,  1914,  dispelled  all  my 

»  illusions  on  this  point.     I  saw  that  I  had  not  impressed 

him  at  all,  and  that  the  disagreeable  and  dangerous  duty 

devolved  on  me  of  endeavoring  to  impress  Congress  and 

the  people.     Hence  mv  testimony. 

Beginning  with  the  morning  after  my  testimony  the 
Secretary's  manner  toward  me  changed  entirely.  He 
was  always  polite,  but  a  cold  formality  took  the  place  of 
a  warm  cordiality;  disapproval  was  intimated  in  every 
way,  though  never  expressed  in  words.  But  my  period 
of  misery  had  passed.  I  knew  that  I  had  done  right, 
and  that  my  testimony  as  the  official  expert  of  the  Navy 
Department,  had  roused  a  powerful  minority  to  a  realiza 
tion  of  the  peril  of  the  nation. 


s 


CHAPTER  XXXVII 

WAK   GAME,   THE   ADMINISTRATIVE   PLAN,   AND   MY 
RESIGNATION 

OME  entries  in  my  diary  read  as  follows: 


Jan.  27 — On  board  Dolphin  in  Tangier  Sound  all  day,  Rhode 
Island  firing  Isham  shell  with  Isham  fuses  in  direction  of  San 
Marcos  (wreck)  to  see  if  Isham  shell  would  travel  under  water 
after  striking  the  water,  and  then  explode  after  running  one 
second  of  time.  Only  one  did  this  perfectly;  but  this  shows 
principle  is  correct,  and  only  details  are  imperfect. 

Jan.  28 — Returned  to  Wash,  in  Dolphin  this  A.  M.  and  then 
went  to  Dept.  Knight  came  in,  and  told  me  the  Sec.  was  very 
angry  with  him  for  his  speech.  Yet  all  Knight  did  was  to  tell 
the  truth  about  the  efficiency  of  the  navy!  He  told  only  what 
all  naval  officers  knew,  both  American  and  Foreign! 

Jan.  30.  At  my  suggestion  Hobson  called  on  Dewey  in 
forenoon.  Dewey  expressed  himself  in  favor  of  Ch.  Nav.  Op. — 
but  (of  course)  does  not  want  G.  B.  [General  Board]  wiped  out. 
I  pointed  out  this  will  not  affect  G.  B.  When  App.  Bill  came 
up  in  Committee  of  whole  today,  Mann  (rep.  leader)  had  the 
provision  for  Chief  Naval  Operations  stricken  out  on  point  of 
order. 

At  this  time  the  positions  of  aid  for  personnel  and  aid 
for  inspections  had  been  vacant  for  some  time;  so  that 
the  entire  business  of  the  department  was  virtually  di 
vided  between  the  aid  for  operations  and  the  aid  for  ma 
terial.  This  does  not  mean  that  they  did  any  work  inde 
pendently  of  the  secretary  or,  in  fact,  that  they  did  any 
executive  work  whatever;  they  were  merely  advisers. 
There  was  a  third  aid,  the  aid  for  education,  but  his  work 
dealt  solely  with  education. 

572 


WAR  GAME  573 

\,  Feb.  1.  ...  I  got  Oliver,  Knapp  and  Smith  in  my  office  and 
explained  my  idea  or  scheme  of  making  war  plans  on  moving 
picture  basis. 

Feb.  2nd.  .  .  .  Hobson  and  Isham  putting  pressure  on  me  to 
hurry  up  Isham  test.  I  pointed  out  difficulties,  etc.  In  House, 
practically  all  the  new  legislation  on  App.  Bill  stricken  out  on 
point  of  order.  Plucking  Board  however,  is  abolished!  Meet 
ing  G.  B.  I  explained  my  ideas  about  getting  up  war  plans,  but 
did  not  dwell  on  photographic  features  of  my  scheme.  I  ex 
plained  all  of  it  however  to  Madison. 

Feb.  3.  ...  Submarine  attack  on  merchant  ships  making 
big  scare  in  England.  My  report  as  to  A.  P.  Shell  and  Isham 
Shell  is  now  printed  in  A.  M.  papers.  Meeting  G.  B.  I  pro 
pound  my  solution  (that  is,  I  do  in  part)  of  the  problem  of 
getting  up  war  plans,  using  analogy  of  chess  games. 

Feb.  4.  ...  Meeting  G.  B.  I  elaborated  my  scheme  for  mak 
ing  war  plans,  and  showed  how  (if  we  make  them  carefully  and 
logically  by  well  played  out  games)  we  can  decide  better  by 
far  than  any  one  else,  how  many  ships,  men  and  units  of  all 
kinds  the  navy  needs,  in  order  to  defend  our  coast,  in  war, 
both  defensively  and  offensively:  in  other  words,  how  we  can 
ascertain  and  explain  what  is  (for  us)  an  "adequate  Navy." 

Feb.  5.  Meeting  G.  B.  Discussed  war  plans.  Situation  more 
threatening  as  to  German  subms.  attack  on  merchant  ships,  espe 
cially  attack  on  neutral  merchant  ships. 

Feb.  6.     Meeting  G.  B.     We  agreed  that  all  navy,  including    , 
ships  in  ordinary  and  reserve,  must  be  ready  in  14  days  (as  a  A 
maximum)  after  declaration  of  war.     Army  and  Navy  Register 
says  Prest.  is  much  provoked  at  certain  officers  of  A  &  N  who  have 
been  talking  and  writing  in  opposition  to  Admin,  policy,  and  that 
Sec.  Nav.  has  told  at  least  one  officer  that  he  is  provoked  with 
him  and  that  Sec.  feels  he  is  not  being  supported  loyally  by 
other  officers. 

Feb.  8.  ...  Meeting  G.  B.  We  have  been  holding  daily 
meetings  and  discussing  war  plans.  Sec.  said  in  p.  m.  that  Ch. 
Bu.  Ord.  was  the  only  man  who  had  helped  him  (Sec.)  to  get 
mines  and  mining  established ! !  I  got  a  file  of  the  papers  in 
the  case,  and  showed  him  that  I  ha<l  started  the  thing  in 
May,  1913,  and  that,  after  the  procedure  had  been  determined 
on,  had  sent  the  papers  to  Material  Mar,  31,  1914. 

Feb.    9. — Meeting    G.    B.     DiscussecJ    war    plan,    war    with 


574     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

"Black" — I  am  trying  to  evolve  scheme  of  plans  in  which 
each  war  plan  will  consist  of  a  number  of  "games,"  which  in 
turn  consist  of  certain  "moves"  by  each  side.  Of  course, 
mobilization  must  be  a  preliminary  step — followed  by  the  first 
move.  .  .  .  Lt.  Com.  Gotten,  just  returned  from  position  of  naval 
attache,  came  into  my  office  and  told  me  about  attitude  of 
Japan.  .  .  .  Callan  O  'Lachlan,  just  returned  from  trip  in  Jason, 
giving  presents  in  Europe,  came  in  and  told  me  lots  about 
German  naval  things. 

Feb.  10 — Meeting  G.  B.  Discussed  War  Plans.  .  .  .  Lt.  Com. 
Gotten,  recently  naval  attache  in  Japan,  came  to  my  office  and 
gave  me  interesting  facts  about  Japs. 

Feb.  11.  Two  years  ago  today,  I  became  Aid  for  Operations ! 
Lt.  Com.  Gotten  came  in  and  talked  to  me  about  various  things 
in  Japan.  I  asked  him  a  great  deal  about  Gen.  Staff  in  Jap. 
Navy  and  he  spoke  very  interestingly  and  intelligently  about  it, 
and  I  asked  him  to  go  into  See's,  office,  and  tell  him  about  it. 
Gotten  told  me  that  in  Jap.  the  Adm.  who  is  Ch.  of  Staff,  is 
more  highly  regarded  than  the  Sec.  Nav.  who  is  also  a  Naval 
Officer,  and  usually  is  of  higher  rank  than  Sec.  Nav.  (Minister 
of  Marine)  because  his  work  is  more  important  and  difficult 
from  national  point  of  view  than  Sec.  Nav's,  which  is  largely 
political. 

My  entries  under  date  of  February  12  are  taken  up 
with  a  discussion  of  the  German  naval  situation.  One 
sentence  is,  ' '  The  significant  part  of  this  to  me  is  that  if 
war  result,  the  strategic  advantage  will  be  to  Germany, 
since  (in  order  to  interfere  with  Germany's  action)  U. 
S.  will  have  to  send  ships  near  to  Germany." 

Feb.  15th — Anniversary  of  our  wedding.  Had  Japanese  Am 
bassador  and  his  wife  and  other  guests  at  dinner.  German  sit 
uation  getting  rather  serious. 

Feb.  16th — Meeting  G.  B.  Discussed  War  Plans  with  Black. 
.  .  .  Farewell  dinner  given  by  Capt.  Takeuchi,  I.  J.  N.  in  honor 
Admiral  Dewa.  I  respond  to  the  only  toast,  as  Senior  Adm. 
present. 

Feb.  17th.  .  .  .  Dinner  at  Japanese  Embassy.  I  take  in  Mrs. 
Daniels,  and  wife  is  taken  in  to  dinner  by  Admiral  Dewa,  I.  J.  N. 

Beautiful  Dinner.     Ash  Wednesday! 


WAE  GAME  575 

Feb.  18.  Meeting  G.  B.  European  situation  worse — also 
Jap.  situation.  Also  Mexican.  Adm.  Dewa  gave  a  splendid 
banquet  at  Shoreham  Hotel,  68  guests.  I  sat  between  Sec.  War 
and  3rd  Ass.  Sec.  State.  Sec.  State  sat  next  host — and  after 
host  made  little  speech,  Sec.  State — with  great  bad  taste — re 
plied.  His  speech  was  foolish,  but  pleasant  because  delivered  in 
a  very,  very  pleasant  way ;  but  he  should  have  let  a  naval  officer 
make  the  reply. 

Feb.  19— Meeting  G.  B.  War  Plans.  Sec.  called  into  con 
sultation  Blue,  the  Ch.  Const.  Taylor— and  the  Judge  Advocate 
General  to  help  him  draft  a  letter  to  Sen.  Nav.  Committee,  ask 
ing  them  to  change  House  Committee's  recommend,  as  to  Ch. 
Nav.  Operations.  The  draft  decided  on  emasculated  the  provi 
sion  considerably,  but  included  the  legalization  of  a  Ch.  of  Nav. 
Operations. 

Feb.  20.  Situation  everywhere  worse  as  to  war.  The  prize 
essay  of  Lt.  Com.  Knox  about  Doctrine  has  been  sent  to  all  the 
members  Nav.  Committees  of  House  and  Senate.  At  annual 
meeting  of  the  American  Society  of  Naval  Engineers,  I  made 
the  speech — first  speech  of  evening — in  reply  to  the  toast — 
"The  Navy." 

Feb.  22nd — Washington's  Birthday.  I  had  a  very  heated  and 
disagreeable  talk  with  Sec.  lasting  an  hour  and  a  quarter.  .  .  . 
Conversation  drifted  to  Knight's  lecture  and  my  testimony  and 
Sec.  showed  great  heat  in  denouncing  both.  In  p.  m.  Ad.  Dewey 
took  me  to  drive  and  I  poured  my  sad  tale  into  his  sympathetic 
ear. 

Feb.  24 — Meeting  G.  B.     War  Plans.     N.  Y.  World  has  sensa 
tional  suggestion  for  sham  attack  on  N.  Y.  by  Atlantic  Fleet,     ^ 
using  all  the  ships  in  the  Atlantic — 125  in  all ! !     To  attempt  this  / 
would  be  to  expose  our  unpreparedness,  especially  in  personnel. 
Talk  with  Asst.  Sec.  in  p.  m.  about  what  we  could — and  would 
have  to  do — in  Dept.  to  get  ready  for  war.     Sec^ seems  very  sure 
rmfTiing  is  needed  and  that  everything  is  ready! ! ! 

Feb.  25.  Senate  agreed  to  "Ch.  Nav.  Op."  in  the  emasculated 
form  passed  by  the  Senate  Committee. 

Feb.  26.  Sent  description  of  my  horizometer,  with  under 
lying  scientific  explanation,  to  Geo.  N.  Saegmuller,  Vice  Prest. 
of  Bausch  &  Lomb  Optical  Co. — in  accord,  with  his  oral  sug 
gestion  two  days  ago — so  the  Company  can  prepare  application 
for  patent." 


576     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

During  the  preceding  three  years  I  had  been  carrying 
on  systematic  experiments  with  my  horizometer,  and  had 
succeeded  in  improving  it  greatly.  The  trouble  I  found 
was  that  the  demands  of  modern  naval  gunnery  increased 
as  rapidly  as  my  improvements  did,  so  that  by  the  time 
I  got  a  new  instrument  ready  for  test,  it  was  obsolete. 

Mr.  Saegmuller  had  had  great  experience  in  making 
fire-control  instruments  for  the  navy,  and  he  thought 
that  with  the  resources  of  the  great  Bausch  &  Lomb  Opti 
cal  Company  in  Rochester  he  could  make  it  a  practical 
success. 

Mar.  1.  The  conferees  of  Senate  and  House  came  to  an  agree 
ment.  In  the  matter  of  Ch.  Nav.  Op.  agreement  was  on  basis 
proposed  by  Sen.  Committee. 

Mar.  4.  Congress  has  adjourned  at  last.  Big  Naval  Ap 
propriation — biggest  yet — all  due  of  course  to  probability  of 
war,  and  possibly  just  a  little  to  my  testimony  as  to  our  unpre- 
paredness  and  the  favorable  comments  on  it  by  the  public 
press. 

Mar.  5.  Meeting  1st  and  2nd  Committee  G.  Bd.  in  my  office 
to  discuss  war  game.  We  conclude  best  to  refer  matter  to  G.  B. 
for  final  recommendation — Sec.  agrees  informally.  I  told 
Dewey  my  idea  and  he  agreed  with  much  pleasure.  I  told  this 
to  Sec.  and  he  agreed  with  pleasure  too! 

Mar.  6.  ...  Callan  O'Lachlan  called  and  said  he  was  going 
to  try  to  induce  Sec.  to  make  me  Ch.  Nav.  Op.  He  called*  me 
up  by  'phone  at  7  P.  M.  and  said  Sec.  was  very  non-committal. 

Mar.  7.  Sunday.  I  met  Sec.  by  appointment  in  his  office  at 
10 :30.  .  .  .  Then  the  conversation  drifted  to  our  fleet,  war  col 
lege,  Dept — especially  their  mutual  relations.  I  gave  Sec.  an 
historical  account  of  the  endeavor  that  has  been  going  on  for  20 
years  to  get  unity  of  effort  in  Dept.  and  Navy;  told  him  about 
Luce,  Mahan,  and  Taylor,  and  the  reforms  Taylor  began — 
which  were  ended  by  his  death  in  summer  1904 — and  showed  him 
that  since  then  nearly  all  his  work  had  been  halted,  and  that  6 
men  had  been  Ch.  Bu.  Nav;  6  C.  in  C.  and  6  Prest.  War  Col 
lege; — 18  men  all  pulling  at  loose  ends,  each  man  "playing 
his  own  tune,"  etc.,  etc.  He  seemed  very  much  impressed  in 
deed. 


WAR  GAME  577 

March  8.  Meeting  G.  B.  in  forenoon.  Discussed  war  game 
for  May.  G.  B.  not  very  enthusiastic  about  their  making  war 
game  plans,  Badger  holding  that  was  province  of  Commander 
in  Chief.  I  explained  that  the  modern  and  foreign  method  is 
for  Gen.  Staff  to  make  war  plans,  and  thus  get  a  consecutive 
policy,  instead  of  letting  each  C  in  C  make  hasty  war  game  plans, 
according  to  his  fancy.  I  made  no  impression  on  Badger,  un 
til  I  told  how  the  Sec.  and  Dewey  had  come  to  my  way  of 
thinking,  and  then  he  gave  in.  G.  B.  then  all  agreed.  Callan 
O'Lachlan  called  and  said  he  had  called  on  Dewey  day  before, 
and  that  both  Dewey  and  his  wife  had  spoken  of  me  in  the  most 
enthusiastic  way,  but  that  Dewey  said  he  was  sure  Sec.  had 
made  up  his  mind.  O'Lachlan  had  intended  to  get  views  of 
rear  admirals  in  town,  but  Dewey 's  attitude  induced  him  to  give 
up  idea. 

March  9.  Meeting  G.  B.  .  .  .  Dewey  told  me  he  thought 
Sec.  had  made  up  his  mind  to  make  Fletcher  Ch.  Nav.  Op.  and 
Winslow  C  in  C,  etc.,  etc. 

Mar.  10.  Meeting  G.  B.  Badger  absent.  Discussed  war 
game  with  fleet  in  May  next.  I  bad  considerable  trouble  in  get 
ting  Bd.  to  agree  to  my  scheme  of  making  the  game  show  what 
would  really  happen  if  a  hostile  fleet  should  start  for  our  eastern 
coast.  In  fact,  I  had  to  surrender  part  of  my  scheme,  and  con 
sent  to  the  idea  that  the  hostile  force  should  be  much  less  than 
what  Germany  would  really  send,  the  Bd.  holding  that,  if  the 
hostile  force  supposed  in  the  war  game  should  be  so  large,  it 
would  not  be  a  game  at  all,  but  a  one  sided  slaughter. 

N  My  entries  for  the  next  few  days  concern  the  projected 
war  game  in  May  and  the  threatening  situation  in  regard 
to  Mexico  and  Germany.  Realizing  that  I  should  not 
probably  stay  in  the  department  much  longer,  as  I  knew 
the  secretary  would  probably  soon  decide  as  to  the  chief 
of  naval  operations,  I  was  intensely  anxious  to  have  this 
war  game  settled  before  I  left.  It  was  an  absolutely  new 
departure  for  our  Navy  Department  to  make  plans  for 
strategic  games  for  the  fleet,  and  I  was  afraid  that  the 
scheme  might  fall  through  unless  I  got  all  the  details  set 
tled  before  I  left. 
My  entries  of  March  15  and  16  show  that  the  Assistant 


578     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Secretary  and  I,  together  with  the  General  Board,  de 
cided  on  a  certain  scheme  for  the  war  game  in  May 
which  would  represent  facts  as  they  would  probably  be  in 
case  of  an  attack  on  our  coast. 

March  17 — Sec.  said  he  does  not  want  to  have  any  war  game 
in  May,  which  will  include  any  defeat  of  the  U.  S.  Fleet!  So 
all  our  plans  to  make  the  game  educational  to  the  people  have 
failed — or  will  fail !  Sec.  made  a  speech  at  launching  of  Penna. 
yesterday,  in  which  he  declared  that  U.  S.  Navy  had  never  been 
so  efficient  as  it  is  now. 

During  all  the  time  that  I  had  been  aid  for  operations 
I  had  been  endeavoring  to  bring  about  a  procedure 
whereby  each  bureau  should  make  quarterly  reports  to 
the  Navy  Department  as  to  its  exact  state  of  prepared 
ness  for  war,  including  what  had  been  done  and  what  re 
mained  to  be  done.  This  idea  was  not  original  with  me, 
for  I  had  inherited  that  idea  from  my  predecessor,  Ad 
miral  Vreeland,  who  had  inherited  it  from  Admiral 
Wainwright.  As  there  was  considerable  labor  involved 
in  the  work,  and  as  the  matter  was  not  very  urgent,  Wain 
wright  and  Vreeland  had  never  finished  the  scheme,  or 
secured  the  signature  of  the  Secretary  to  it.  But  shortly 
after  I  became  aid  for  operations  the  possibility  of  war 
with  Japan  brought  the  necessity  for  such  a  scheme 
sharply  to  my  attention.  During  all  the  two  years  that 
had  elapsed  since  then  I  had  kept  the  war  plan  committee 
of  the  General  Board  at  work  on  the  details  of  the  plan, 
so  that  they  kept  it  up  to  date,  and  I  had  urged  the  Secre 
tary  several  times  to  sign  it  and  let  me  get  the  procedure 
into  operation.  I  explained  to  him  that  until  the  ad 
ministrative  section  of  the  general  war  plan,  which  we 
usually  called  the  "administrative  plan"  had  been  ap 
proved  and  signed  by  him,  the  Navy  Department  could 
not  to  be  regarded  as  an  efficient  organization;  and  that  if 
war  broke  out,  we  should  be  caught  absolutely  unpre 
pared,  that  we  could  not  even  begin  to  prepare  until  after 
that  paper  had  been  signed.  On  each  occasion,  also,  I 


ADMINISTRATIVE  PLAN  579 

told  him  that  I  thought  there  was  great  probability  of  our 
getting  into  the  present  war. 

Mar.  18.  I  took  to  Sec.  and  explained  to  him  carefully  the 
new  Administrative  Section  of  the  General  War  Plan,  prepared 
by  G.  B.  with  accompanying  letter,  signed  by  Adm.  Dewey. 
He  demurred  a  good  deal  in  a  general  way,  and  finally  declared 
he  did  not  wish  to  take  any  action  in  the  matter  for  the  pres 
ent  ! !  I  then  discussed  with  him  two  papers,  prepared  by  my 
self,  one  called  "Meditations  on  Organization"  and  the  other 
"Meditations  on  Mobilization."  He  made  little  comment,  but 
simply  returned  them  to  me. 

Mar.  24.  Mr.  Lansing  agrees  with  me  absolutely  as  to  the 
Prince  Eitel  Frederick.  I  am  much  relieved.  It  is  very  curious 
how  we  always  agree. 

Ever  since  my  testimony  of  December  17, 1914,  my  posi 
tion  had  become  increasingly  difficult.  The  General 
Board  and  the  officers  of  the  navy  backed  me  in  all  I  was 
doing,  but  the  assistance  they  gave  was  purely  moral  and 
spiritual.  I  mean  that  they  could  not  make  any  repre 
sentations  to  the  Secretary  or  bring  any  influence  to  bear 
upon  him.  There  were  three  aids  at  the  time ;  but  as  the 
aid  for  education  did  not  really  count,  there  were  only 
two  real  aids,  the  aid  for  material  and  I,  and  I  was  told 
by  many  people  that  the  aid  for  material  was  not  aiding 
me,  but  actually  working  against  me.  The  chief  of 
the  Bureau  of  Navigation  was  evidently  much  more  in 
the  Secretary's  confidence  than  I  was.  I  had  thought 
it  possible  that  the  Secretary  might  make  me  the  chief 
of  naval  operations,  though  I  would  have  been  willing 
at  any  time  to  bet  ten  to  one  that  he  would  not.  I  knew 
that  I  was  very  deficient  in  naval  strategy;  but  I  also 
knew  that  I  came  nearer  to  being  efficient  in  it  than 
anybody  else,  with  the  exception  of  Admiral  Dewey  and 
Admiral  Wainwright,  who  were  both  of  course  unavail 
able  for  the  office.  I  realized  also  the  grim  humor  of 
the  fact  that  even  my  partial  understanding  of  naval 
strategy  was  the  main  cause  of  my  difficulties. 


580     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR- ADMIRAL 

About  this  time  it  occurred  to  me  that  when  I  gave  up 
my  position  it  might  be  a  good  plan  for  me  to  take  up 
either  the  development  of  aeronautics  or  the  develop 
ment  of  my  old  scheme  of  an  experimental  department, 
which  I  had  suggested  in  my  essay  "The  Naval  Pro 
fession"  in  1907,  and  in  my  essay  " Naval  Power"  in 
1911.  On  one  occasion  at  target-practice,  when  I  had 
command  of  the  third  division  in  the  fleet,  I  had  talked 
about  this  plan  to  Mr.  Miller  Reese  Hutchinson,  who  was 
Edison 's  right-hand  man,  and  had  got  him  to  promise  to 
endeavor  to  secure  Mr.  Edison's  cooperation  in  case  I 
should  ever  get  the  plan  established.  On  the  occasion 
of  the  birthday  lunch-party  given  to  Mr.  Edison  in  New 
York  when  I  had  the  first  division,  I  broached  the  sub 
ject  to  him  and  tried  to  induce  him  to  go  on  board  the 
Florida.  He  demurred  to  this,  but  we  made  a  half-way 
arrangement  that  I  should  go  down  to  Orange  and  talk 
with  him  about  my  scheme.  Captain  Knapp  and  I  enter 
tained  his  daughter  at  lunch  on  two  occasions  aboard  the 
Florida  and  enlisted  her  cooperation  also.  On  many 
occasions  I  had  told  the  Secretary  of  the  difficulties  that 
inventors  had  with  the  department,  and  had  easily  got 
him  to  agree  that  it  would  be  highly  desirable  to  have 
such  a  plan  adopted  as  I  had  outlined.  My  idea  was  to 
have  a  board  of  which  naval  officers  and  civilians  should 
be  members,  who  should  be  selected  for  their  peculiar 
qualifications,  the  head  of  it  to  be  a  naval  officer,  in  order 
that  the  efforts  of  the  civilian  inventors  might  be  directed 
along  lines  that  would  be  strategically  advantageous,  and 
fit  in  with  naval  necessities. 

March  24.  ...  I  suggested  to  Sec.  that  I  be  given  job  of 
handling  new  inventions  of  all  kinds,  suggested  to  navy — telling 
him  this  idea  was  old  with  me,  and  that  many  people  for  15 
or  20  years  had  said  navy  ought  to  give  me  exclusive  duty  as 
inventor  to  Department,  Sec.  seemed  much  impressed,  and 
said  to  speak  again  to  him  about  it. 

March  25th.  I  reminded  Sec.  of  our  talk  yesterday,  told  him  I 
was  in  earnest,  and  that  I  did  not  like  my  present  job,  etc. 


MY  RESIGNATION  581 

Sec.  answered  he  had  been  thinking  about  it,  and  thought  it 
would  be  well  to  make  me  head  of  a  board,  go  to  Europe  for  a 
few  months,  etc.  I  mentioned  to  wife  and  daughter.  Former 
is  enthusiastic,  and  wants  to  go  to  Europe  with  me. 

Mar.  31.  I  saw  letter  from  U.S.S.  Wyoming,  approved  by 
C  in  C  of  fleet,  saying  tests  of  my  Horizometer,  made  under 
various  kinds  of  weather  and  conditions,  show  more  consistent 
results  than  the  range  finders  show,  and  asking  permission  to 
keep  the  Horizometer  until  after  target-practice  in  May. 

The  conditions  under  which  I  was  living  were  becom 
ing  daily  more  irritating.  I  realized  that  a  crisis  was 
going  to  come  soon,  but  I  was  continually  urged  by  of 
ficers,  including  Admiral  Dewey,  to  hang  on  as  long  as  I 
could  stand  it.  The  break  came  on  April  1 ;  but,  as  often 
happens,  the  final  straw  was  a  trivial  matter. 

April  1st.  Found  three  things  were  being  done  by  Dept.  in 
work  of  Division  of  Operations,  without  my  knowledge.  So,  I 
went  into  See's  room  in  p.  m.  and  asked  him  to  accept  my 
resignation  as  Aid  for  Operations,  saying  Sec.  had  treated  me 
with  great  injustice  for  three  months,  that  I  had  served  him 
faithfully  for  more  than  two  years,  that  in  every  single  case 
in  which  he  had  followed  my  advice,  the  event  had  proved  me 
right,  etc.,  etc.  He  asked  me  when  my  resignation  would 
take  effect,  and  I  replied  as  soon  as  convenient  to  him.  He  re 
plied  that  he  would  arrange  it !  I  told  Cronan  and  Knapp  con 
fidentially. 

April  2nd.  Sec.  Nav.  as  suave  and  polite  this  A.  M.  as  usual. 
I  showed  him  my  "record"  as  rear  admiral,  that  is  my  "reports 
of  fitness"  from  President  Gen.  Bd,  Commander  in  Chief  At 
lantic  fleet,  also  the  report  on  me  for  "Eminent  and  Conspicu 
ous  Conduct  in  Battle"  at  Manila  Bay;  he  seemed  considerably 
impressed  by  the  excellence  of  my  reports.  Confirmed  my  resig 
nation  in  writing,  giving  no  reason. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  afternoon  I  received  informa 
tion  that  the  secretary  had  given  out  a  notice  to  the 
Herald  to  the  effect  that  he  was  considering  the  idea 
of  appointing  Admiral  Winslow  as  chief  of  naval  opera 
tions.  As  I  had  given  in  my  resignation  to  him  confi- 


582     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

dentially,  I  was  surprised  that  the  Secretary  should  give 
out  this  statement  without  my  knowledge.  I  realized 
immediately  that  I  had  to  act  at  once  or  be  put  in  a  very 
mortifying  position.  As  it  was  about  ten  minutes  before 
the  close  of  office  hours,  and  the  clerks  were  about  to  go 
home,  I  had  just  time  in  which  to  write  a  very  brief  let 
ter.  This  was  unfortunate;  because  with  a  little  more 
time  I  should  have  been  able  to  set  forth  my  reasons  and 
to  make  them  a  matter  of  record  in  the  department.  A 
statement  of  these  reasons  would  have  been  simply  that 
I  had  not  been  able  to  induce  the  Secretary  to  take  the 
necessary  steps  to  prepare  the  navy  for  war,  and  that  my 
efforts  had  ended  in  my  being  ignored  in  even  minor  mat 
ters.  Only  two  weeks  before  I  had  again  taken  the  ad 
ministrative  plan  to  him,  and  he  had  again  declined  to 
sign  it,  though  I  had  explained  again  that  preparedness 
could  not  begin  until  he  had  approved  and  signed  it. 

As  I  was  no  longer  bound  to  secrecy,  I  told  a  few 
friends  that  I  had  resigned.  They  all  expressed  great 
regret,  but  said  that  they  were  surprised  that  I  had  held 
on  for  so  long  a  time  as  I  had,  and  that  my  act  would  be 
recognized  as  one  of  self-sacrifice,  and  do  great  good  to 
the  navy. 

The  news  quickly  spread,  and  I  received  many  tele 
phone  messages  from  friends  and  from  newspapers  about 
dinner  time.  So  Mrs.  Fiske  and  I  went  to  the  theater; 
but  I  found  three  reporters  waiting  for  me  when  we 
reached  home.  I  told  them  I  had  nothing  to  say.  Some 
officers  have  told  me  since  that  this  was  a  mistake,  and 
that  I  should  have  declared  the  reason,  because  this  would 
have  caused  an  investigation. 

For  about  five  days  the  leading  newspapers  in  the 
country  contained  articles,  editorials,  and  cartoons  re 
lating  to  my  resignation.  They  all  seemed  to  take  my 
side,  but  not  to  treat  the  matter  as  one  of  importance 
except  as  a  sensation  news,  in  the  same  class  with  a  di 
vorce  scandal  or  railway  accident.  If  an  officer  in  any 
other  army  or  navy  who  occupied  an  analogous  position 


ADMINISTRATIVE  PLAN  583 

had  resigned  that  position  in  similar  circumstances,  the 
country  would  have  demanded  an  investigation  instantly 
and  that  either  the  officer  or  his  chief  be  punished.  In 
Great  Britain  even  a  rumored  disagreement  between  the 
First  Lord  of  the  Admiralty  and  the  First  Sea  Lord 
creates  alarm  throughout  the  empire,  because  a  disagree 
ment  on  an  important  point  would  be  a  national  peril. 
But  in  the  United  States  the  matter  was  treated  lightly. 
I  had  testified  only  three  months  and  a  half  before  that 
the  navy  was  unprepared  and  that  it  would  take  it  at  least 
five  years  to  get  prepared,  and  in  so  doing  I  had  taken 
an  attitude  directly  the  reverse  of  that  taken  by  the  Sec 
retary  of  the  Navy.  The  newspapers  all  stated  that  I 
resigned  because  the  Secretary  would  not  institute  the 
measures  which  I  urged;  and  yet,  when  I  resigned,  the 
matter  was  a  seven  days'  wonder  and  then  forgotten, 
though  the  question  involved  the  safety  of  the  nation. 
The  Secretary  directed  me  to  continue  my  duties  for  the 
present. 

To  return  to  my  diary. 

Apr.  16.  ...  I  took  to  Sec.  the  Administrative  Section  of 
the  Gen.  Bd's  War  Plan  and  pointed  out  that  until  he  ap 
proved  it,  the  Dept.  had  no  war  plan;  because  although  Gen 
eral  Board  had  plans,  they  all  depended  on  the  Department  and 
the  bureaus  being  ready,  and  they  could  not  even  begin  to  get 
ready  until  he  approved  the  G.  B.'s  Ad.  Plan,  whereby  the 
Bureaus  and  offices  reported  to  Dept.  every  quarter  their  exact 
state  of  readiness. — I  fully  expected  that — after  our  talk  yes 
terday, — he  would  sign  the  G.  B.'s  paper  at  once!  To  my 
amazement,  he  said  he  would  talk  to  me  about  it  next  week! 
The  same  thing  occurred  about  3  or  4  weeks  ago.  The  recom 
mending  letter  was  signed  by  Dewey  Mar.  13,  1915 — and  is 
similar  to  letter  2  years  ago,  that  also  was  not  acted  on ! 

Apr.  19.  Fletcher  and  Winslow  at  Dept.  N.  Y.  Times  says 
Winslow  is  to  be  appointed  Ch.  Nav.  Op.  Both  had  long  con 
ference  with  Sec.  I  do  not  know  what  Winslow  said;  but 
Fletcher^  tells  me  that  he  (Fletcher)  urged  Sec.  in  most  em 
phatic  language  to  appoint  me,  for  reasons  both  professional 
and  political.  Providence  Journal  Apr.  14,  contained  letter 


584     FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

from  fleet,  Hampton  Roads,  signed  ''David  Barry"  who  has 
two  sons  in  fleet — saying  all  the  officers  and  men  of  the  fleet 
want  Fiske  Ch.  Nav.  Op.  Roosevelt  and  I  agree  that  opinion 
of  all  is  that  Fiske  ought  to  be  Ch..Nav.  Op.  with  Howard  next 
choice. 

Apr.  23.  I  gave  Sec.  for  signature  the  various  orders  for 
carrying  out  the  War  Game  next  month,  and  explained  that  he 
was  starting  a  ' '  strategical  policy, ' '  and  that  his  action  was  the 
most  important,  radical,  and  progressive  action  he  had  taken 
in  all  his  two  years  of  office.  He  seemed  impressed,  and  asked  me 
to  prepare  a  "press  notice,"  expounding  my  idea.  I  did  so 
and  made  the  statement  for  the  press  very  emphatic.  He  gave 
out  the  press  notice,  just  as  I  wrote  it.  I  think  this  marks  an 
epoch  and  is  one  of  the  most  important  things  I  have  ever  ac 
complished.  It  has  taken  me  nearly  two  years  to  bring  it  to 
pass. 

Apr.  24.  N.  Y.  Herald  has  first  column  and  a  half  on  first 
page  devoted  to  "General  Board  will  Make  Plans  for  Fleet 
Drills, ' '  and  has  long  and  appreciative  account  of  the  new  policy. 
I  had  long  talk  with  Dewey,  and  he  said  he  thought  Sec.  was 
' '  coming  round, ' '  that  he  had  told  Fletcher  to  tell  Sec.  he  ought 
to  make  me  Ch.  Nav.  Op.  and  that  he  thought  Sec.  would  do  it. 
.  .  .  Got  Sec.  to  order  that  the  May  War  Game  would  be  called 
"Department  Strategic  Problem  No.  1." 

Apr.  28.  The  Sec.  informed  me  this  afternoon  that  Captain 
Benson,  Commandant  of  Phil.  Navy  Yard  is  to  be  Ch.  Nav.  Op. 
He  gave  out  this  news  to  the  press  this  afternoon.  Adm.  Knight 
and  Capt.  Roy  Smith  both  expressed  to  me  their  surprise  and 
disapproval  of  See's  selection.  I  do  not  think  the  Navy  will 
like  it.  Fletcher  told  me  the  other  day  that  Sec.  had  asked 
him  about  Benson,  and  Fletcher  strongly  urged  that  Benson 
had  not  the  necessary  knowledge  or  experience  or  ability,  and 
was  in  exactly  the  position  now  he  is  fitted  for. 

I  was  surprised  at  the  secretary's  selection  of  Cap 
tain  Benson.  I  had  been  perfectly  sure  that  he  would 
not  appoint  me,  but  I  thought  he  would  appoint  some 
officer  who  had  shown  a  bent  toward  strategy.  I  liked 
Captain  Benson  very  well  and  admired  him  in  many 
ways.  He  and  I  had  been  shipmates  on  board  the  Ten 
nessee  for  about  a  year,  when  we  had  occupied  the  mutu- 


SELECTION  OF  CAPTAIN  BENSON        585 

ally  difficult  positions  of  captain  of  the  ship  and  chief  of 
staff  to  the  commander-in-chief.  Benson  was  a  hand 
some,  dignified  gentleman  of  thoroughly  correct  habits, 
very  religious  and  conscientious,  and  an  excellent  sea 
man;  but  I  had  never  heard  that  he  had  ever  shown  the 
slightest  interest  in  strategy  or  been  on  the  General 
Board,  or  even  taken  the  summer  course  at  the  war 
college.  When  I  was  in  command  of  the  first  division, 
Benson  was  in  command  of  the  Utah,  and  I  wrote  on  his 
efficiency  report  every  six  months  that  he  would  make  an 
excellent  superintendent  of  the  Naval  Academy.  I  knew 
that  Benson  desired  to  have  that  detail  at  the  end  of  his 
cruise,  and  I  thought  he  would  be  admirably  fitted  for  it. 
He  had  been  on  duty  at  the  Naval  Academy  for  several 
tours,  so  that  he  was  fitted  for  the  position  of  superin 
tendent  not  only  by  his  ability  in  matters  of  detail,  but  by 
long  experience  at  the  Naval  Academy  itself.  But  the 
position  for  which  he  was  now  selected  was  the  most  im 
portant  one  in  the  navy,  with  requirements  so  great  that 
no  officer  in  the  navy  was  really  competent  to  discharge 
them  skilfully.  For  the  position  the  first  requirement 
was  a  clear  apprehension  of  strategy  and  a  fine  mind. 
Benson,  so  far  as  I  knew,  had  devoted  no  attention  what 
ever  to  strategy,  and  his  mind,  while  good  and  sound, 
was  such  that  he  had  never  been  reckoned  one  of  the 
''bright  men"  of  the  navy.  It  seemed  strange  to  me 
that  Benson  should  have  been  selected  when  there  were 
men  like  Howard,  Knight,  Knapp,  Hood,  and  Oliver 
available. 

May  10.  Getting  my  office  ready  to  turn  over  to  Benson. 
Corrected  and  signed  final  copy  of  letter  to  Sec.  recommending 
that,  in  carrying  out  the  War  Game  the  latter  half  of  this 
month,  the  Dept.  be  put  also  into  the  game,  go  on  a  war  footing 
temporarily,  G.  B.  keep  track  of  game  night  and  day,  and  bureaus 
issue  orders,  etc.,  etc.  Sec.  was  in  Philadelphia,  so  I  did  not 
hand  it  to  him. 

May  11.  Benson  came  in  and  I  turned  over  to  him  about 
11  a.  m.  About  10.30  Sec.  sent  for  Benson  and  said  he  wished 


586     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

him  to  attend  meeting  G.  B.  that  morning.  Capt.  Volney  Chase 
reported  as  Asst.  to  Chief  Nav.  Op !  I  never  had  an  asst !  I 
handed  Sec.  my  letter  of  yesterday,  and  said  goodbye  in  pres 
ence  of  Congressman  Fitzgerald.  I  said,  "I  wish  to  say  that  I 
have  never  been  treated  with  more  courtesy  by  anybody  than  by 
you,  and  that,  from  my  point  of  view,  our  differences  have  been 
wholly  professional."  Sec.  seemed  considerably  flabbergasted, 
and  stammered  out  that  he  entertained  a  high  regard  for  me. 
Then  I  shook  hands  with  Mr.  Fitzgerald  and  him  and  departed. 

I  think  that  the  six  weeks  which  intervened  between 
the  day  of  my  resignation  and  the  day  when  Benson  re 
lieved  me  was  the  happiest  period  of  my  life.  Through 
out  the  two  years  previous  to  my  resignation  the  situa 
tion  had  been  most  unpleasant.  I  liked  the  secretary 
personally,  but  I  always  looked  forward  with  annoyance 
to  reaching  my  office,  and  having  to  keep  up  day  after  day 
my  continuous  insistence  on  the  recognition  of  elementary 
principles.  It  was  very  wearing  to  retain  that  respect 
ful  speech  and  manner  toward  the  Secretary  which  was 
becoming  in  an  officer  of  the  navy,  and  at  the  same  time 
never  to  yield.  The  temptation  to  yield  was  very  great 
sometimes ;  in  fact,  it  often  occurred  to  me  that  perhaps 
I  was  doing  wrong,  and  that  it  was  my  duty  to  do  as  the 
Secretary  wished. 

I  had  to  carry  on  this  fight  alone,  although  the  officers 
of  the  navy  as  a  class  supported  me.  I  think  that  the 
strongest  support  that  I  got  was  that  given  by  my 
memory  of  the  socialist,  Canaille  Pelletan,  who  had  been 
minister  of  marine  of  the  French  Navy,  and  who  in  four 
years  did  it  such  damage  that  somebody  remarked  that 
if  the  French  Government  had  given  Pelletan  a  salary  of 
a  million  dollars  a  year,  and  had  kept  him  away  from  the 
navy,  the  Government  would  have  made  $100,000,000  by 
the  operation. 

I  do  not  know  whether  Camille  Pelletan  was  sincere  or 
not.  I  have  heard  from  many  sources  that  he  was  a  very 
amiable  man,  and  that  he  was  very  popular  with  many 
people  in  France.  The  people  liked  his  "  democratic 


WAR  GAME  587 

manner"  and  sympathized  with  his  attitude  in  trying  to 
democratize  the  French  Navy;  but  I  doubt  if  even  the 
people  who  liked  him  most  would  have  liked  him  at  all  if 
they  had  realized  that  he  was  ruining  the  navy,  which  was 
the  left  arm  of  the  defense  of  the  republic,  and  which 
they  were  taxed  heavily  to  maintain.  Instead  of  being 
a  friend  of  the  people,  as  so  many  French  people  thought, 
Camille  Pelletan  by  his  course  was  more  dangerous  to 
them  than  all  the  German  spies  in  France  put  together. 
Camille  Pelletan' s  course  did  more  to  break  down  the  de 
fense  of  the  French  Republic  than  a  half  a  million  Ger 
man  troops  could  have  done. 

It  seemed  to  me  that  I  was  in  a  position  in  which  it 
might  be  possible  for  me  to  permit  as  great  an  injury  to 
the  United  States  Navy  as  the  French  Navy  had  suf 
fered.  Possibly  I  overestimated  the  importance  of  my 
position;  but  as  I  often  told  Mr.  Daniels,  I  was  the 
only  man  to  impress  him  with  the  military  side  of  the 
navy  question,  whereas  there  were  ninety  million  peo 
ple  to  impress  him  with  its  other  sides;  and  it  seemed 
to  me  that  his  attitude  toward  the  navy,  especially  in  the 
earlier  days  of  his  administration,  threatened  the  very 
foundations  of  the  national  defense.  Principles  which  I 
had  been  taught  at  the  Naval  Academy,  and  the  truth  of 
which  I  had  seen  proved  in  all  my  later  experience  and  in 
all  my  reading  of  history  and  strategy,  seemed  to  be 
held  of  little  or  no  account. 

As  I  walked  out  of  the  shady  corridors  of  the  Depart 
ment  Building  into  the  bright  sunshine  of  the  town,  I  said 
to  myself  that  I  thought  I  had  been  able  to  prevent  any 
very  great  lowering  of  the  efficiency  of  the  navy,  and  that 
I  had  had  the  great  privilege  of  being  able  to  do  five 
things  which  would  be  of  permanent  benefit  to  it.  These 
were: 

1.  Establishing  the  Division  of  Aeronautics. 

2.  Instituting  strategic  war  problems  for  the  fleet. 

3.  Proving  that  the  country  trusts  army  and  navy  of 
ficers  more  than  it  trusts  any  one  else. 


588     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

4.  Making  Congress  realize  the  needs  of  the  navy  more 
clearly  than  it  had  ever  done  before. 

5.  Establishing  the  office  of  chief  of  naval  operations. 
Besides  these,  there  were  three   other  undertakings 

which  I  had  not  yet  brought  to  a  successful  issue,  but 
which  I  felt  sure  were  in  such  a  state  that  it  was  only  a 
matter  of  a  short  time  before  they,  also,  would  be  accom 
plished  facts.  These  were: 

1.  The  establishment  of  some  agency  under  the  depart 
ment  for  recognizing  and  developing  new  inventions. 
This  was  accomplished  in  the  following  summer  by  the 
establishment  of  the  Naval  Consulting  Board,  with  Mr. 
Edison  at  the  head.     This  differed  from  my  plan  mainly 
in  being  composed  of  civilians  exclusively.     My  idea  has 
been  to  have  a  naval  officer  with  inventive  ability  to  be 
the  head,  in  order  to  steer  the  efforts  of  the  civilians 
along  the  most  advantageous  lines. 

2.  The  recognition  of  the  possibilities  of  the  diving- 
shell. 

3.  The  putting  into  effect  of  the  administrative  section 
of  the  general  war  plan.     Much  more  than  any  other  one 
thing,  the  refusal  of  the  secretary  to  sign  this  plan  was 
the  cause  of  the  differences  between  him  and  me.     Let 
any  one  imagine  himself  in  my  position,  and  realize  how 
I  must  have  felt  in  knowing  that  the  department  pos 
sessed  no  means  of  knowing  its  degree  of  readiness  for 
war,  and  that  it  could  not  know  it  until  a  certain  paper 
had  been  signed,  and  until  the  methods  which  that  paper 
provided  for  had  been  in  operation  for  a  considerable 
time. 

The  administrative  plan  was  signed  shortly  after  I 
gave  up  my  position  to  my  successor.  That  plan  and  the 
office  of  chief  of  naval  operations  are  the  means  by  which 
the  Navy  Department  got  ready  for  war,  and  by  means 
of  which  it  operated  during  the  war  and  has  operated 
since. 

The  virtues  of  these  two  schemes  were  realized  imme 
diately  after  they  were  put  into  operation.  This  is 


FINAL  SUCCESS  OF  CERTAIN  MEASURES     589 

proved  by  the  following  extracts,  taken  from  page  seven 
of  the  official  report  of  the  Secretary,  made  in  the  follow 
ing  December,  1915 : 

OPERATIONS 
BETTER  ORGANIZATION  EFFECTED 

Upon  my  recommendation  the  naval  appropriation  act  of  1914 
provided  that  "there  shall  be  a  Chief  of  Naval  Operations  .  .  . 
who  shall,  under  the  direction  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  be 
charged  with  the  operations  of  the  fleet  and  with  the  preparation 
and  readiness  of  plans  for  its  use  in  war."  ...  A  well  thought- 
out  plan,  prepared  by  the  General  Board,  for  the  preparation 
of  the  fleet  for  war  in  the  Atlantic,  has  been  approved  and  each 
office  and  bureau  under  the  department  has  been  assigned  its 
proper  share  in  the  general  scheme  of  preparedness.  By  refer 
ence  to  periodic  reports  the  department  may  at  any  time  be 
come  informed  of  defects,  of  efforts  made  to  overcome  them,  and 
of  the  progress  made  toward  a  complete  state  of  readiness. 

It  was  mainly  (almost  wholly)  because  I  urged  the  two 
measures  which  the  Secretary  describes  and  praises  that 
I  had  to  resign  my  position  as  aid  for  operations. 

I  was  surprised  that  the  Secretary  should  state  that 
the  provision  for  a  chief  of  naval  operations  was  made 
upon  his  recommendation. 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII 

"THE  MASTERY  OF  THE  WORLD,"  NAVAL,  PREPAREDNESS 
AND  MY  REPRIMAND 

I  REMAINED  in  Washington  until  the  end  of  June, 
carrying  out  tests  of  the  Isham  diving-shell.  The 
only  instance  of  particular  interest  to  myself  was  a 
speech  that  I  made  at  the  annual  dinner  of  the  Naval 
Academy  Graduates'  Association  on  June  4  in  reply  to 
the  toast,  "The  Navy." 

This  speech  made  a  great  impression  on  my  memory 
from  the  curious  fact  that  it  was  given  before  a  large 
group  of  naval  officers  in  the  presence  of  the  Secretary, 
and  yet  expressed  ideas  of  which  I  knew  he  disapproved. 
I  have  heard  since  that  some  criticized  my  speech  as  be 
ing  in  very  bad  taste  at  a  social  dinner  when  the  Secre 
tary  was  a  guest ;  but  the  great  body  of  naval  officers  ap 
proved  it  very  highly.  The  speech  was  telegraphed  en 
tire  all  over  the  country  by  the  Associated  Press,  and  it 
appeared  more  or  less  fully  in  all  the  papers  the  next 
morning.  On  the  following  day  there  were  many  edi 
torials.  All  those  that  I  saw  were  exceedingly  favor 
able. 

One  phase  of  this  speech  has  a  curious  psychological 
interest  to  me,  and  that  is,  although  I  have  always  been 
an  intensely  nervous  man,  and  though  I  knew  my  speech 
might  subject  me  to  severe  punishment,  yet  I  felt  not  the 
slightest  nervousness  about  it.  The  human  animal  is  a 
curious  thing. 

On  June  28, 1  received  orders  to  obey  my  previous  or 
ders  and  go  to  the  war  college.  I  did  not  want  to  go  to 
the  war  college  at  all.  One  reason  was  that  I  had  en 
gaged  an  apartment  at  Stoneleigh  Court,  in  Washington, 

590 


1  'THE  MASTERY  OF  THE  WORLD"        591 

until  October,  and  another  reason  was  that  I  would  be 
virtually  in  "cold  storage,"  as  some  of  my  friends  ex 
pressed  it.  But  my  principal  reason  was  that  my  wife's 
health  seemed  to  have  been  failing  within  the  last  year, 
and  I  was  beginning  to  be  very  uneasy  about  her. 

July  1.  Reported  at  War  College.  Received  many  letters 
of  congratulation  on  my  speech  and  my  general  "stand,"  that 
had  been  long  awaiting  me. 

July  5.  N.  Y.  Sun  states  Lord  John  Fisher,  R.N.,  former 
1st  Sea  Lord  is  made  Prest.  of  a  Board  to  consider  inventions  for 
naval  use!  Sec.  Nav.  has  lost  another  opportunity  to  make  a 
ten  strike  by  establishing  the  Board  of  Invention  and  Develop 
ment,  that  I  proposed  to  him. 

July  6,  7,  8,  9.  Getting  into  touch  with  War  College,  at 
tending  lectures,  etc.  Working  up  scheme  for  bomb  adapted 
to  be  dropped  from  air  craft  on  vessels  &  to  explode  if  it  strikes, 
&  also  if  it  misses  after  sinking — say  10  feet — by  action  of 
hydrostatic  piston,  or  contact. 

This  was,  of  course,  a  design  of  what  has  since  been 
called  the  "depth  bomb."  I  worked  out  a  good  detailed 
design,  but  I  never  really  had  the  bomb  made,  as  my  at 
tention  became  attracted  to  other  matters.  I  have  been 
told  that  I  have  been  credited  by  some  with  the  invention 
of  the  depth-bomb.  This  is  a  mistake. 

July  12.  ...  Received  Naval  Institute's  announcement  of 
election  for  officers  next  October  10,  in  which  I  am  the  only 
candidate  for  Prest!  And  the  announcement  states  that 
"Adms.  Fletcher  &  Knight  &  Captain  H.  S.  Knapp  were  all 
asked  to  stand  for  election ;  but  each  one  declined  to  run  against 
Rear  Admiral  Fiske." 

July  13.  Sec.  Nav.  has  decided  to  establish  the  "Board  of 
Invention  and  Development."  Edison  and  others  have  agreed 
to  serve  as  advisers,  &  the  papers  comment  on  the  idea  most 
favorably.  This  is  the  pet  scheme  I  have  had  for  years,  & 
which  Sec.  Nav.  agreed  some  time  ago  to  make  me  chief  of.  But 
I  do  not  suppose  he  will  give  it  to  me  now.  Some  papers  say 
that  Fiske,  Strauss  &  Taylor  are  mentioned  for  the  position. 

July  14.     Adm.  Kjiight  told  me  this  morning  that,  in  his 


592     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

opinion,  I  have  not  the  slightest  chance  of  getting  made  Chief 
Board  Inv.  &  Development,  because  See.  Nav.  feels  "very  vin 
dictively  indeed"  toward  me.  Sorry,  but  I  can't  help  it.  .  .  . 
Canal  (Panama)  has  another  slide,  so  I  was  right  about  folly 
of  sending  fleet  through — while  war  is  possible  for  us  in  the 
Atlantic. 

July  16.     Sec.  getting  much  praise  for  Invention  idea.  .  .  . 

July  17.  Board  of  officers  in  Wyoming  send  in  report  on 
Horizometer  that  is  favorable  in  main,  but  points  out  certain 
limitations  &  makes  certain  recommendations  for  changes. 

I  had  no  duties  at  the  war  college.  Knight  naturally 
did  not  want  me  on  the  staff,  realizing  the  incongruity  of 
the  situation  that  would  be  created  if  I  were.  He  gave 
me  a  desk  in  the  delightful  library  of  the  war  college, 
from  the  windows  of  which  I  could  see  in  three  directions 
most  beautiful  and  inspiring  views  of  Narragansett  Bay 
and  its  green-covered  shores  and  islands.  The  library 
is  an  excellent  one,  and  is  especially  complete  in  books 
that  have  been  written  on  history,  government,  and  the 
naval  and  military  arts.  Toward  the  latter  part  of  my 
stay  in  Washington  I  had  said  to  myself  that  perhaps  I 
was  theoretically  wrong  in  the  attitude  I  had  taken,  that 
possibly  I  was  a  " militarist, "  and  that  possibly  it  might 
be  true  that  nations  would  soon  abandon  war,  and  there 
fore  would  soon  abandon  armaments  and  navies,  or  at 
least  restrict  them  by  mutual  agreement. 

So  immediately  on  getting  established  in  that  delight 
ful  library  I  set  to  work  to  study  up  the  subject  with  as 
open  a  mind  as  I  could  command.  I  have  always  felt 
more  at  home  in  a  library  than  in  any  other  place. 
Men  of  my  name  have  been  identified  with  books  for 
many  generations,  and  my  earliest  recollections  are  of 
lying  on  the  floor  in  my  father's  library  reading  books. 

My  recollection  of  the  main  points  in  history  was 
fairly  good,  and  history,  of  course,  told  me  that  wars 
had  continually  succeeded  one  another  all  through  his 
tory;  that  the  most  important  things  that  had  happened 
had  been  wars,  and  that  the  most  important  results 


that  had  been  brought  about  had  been  brought  about 
by  wars.  But  there  were  many  people — one  of  whom 
was  ex-President  Taft — who,  while  not  pacifists  at  all, 
held  the  idea  that  it  was  possible  to  form  a  league  of 
nations  to  enforce  peace,  and  that  the  nations  of  the 
league  could  be  relied  on  to  enforce  it,  and  to  remain 
at  peace  not  only  for  forty-three  years,  as  Germany 
had  done,  but  for  periods  indefinitely  long.  It  seemed 
to  me  that  this  was  largely  a  matter  of  psychology,  and 
so  I  -spent  a  month  studying  psychology.  Of  course  I 
could  not  get  a  very  profound  knowledge  of  psychology 
in  a  month,  but  my  good  grounding  in  mathematics  and 
the  physical  sciences,  and  my  long  training  as  an  ex 
perimentalist,  enabled  me  to  get  a  pretty  good  grip  on 
the  elementary  principles  in  that  period. 

It  seemed  to  me,  after  getting  that  grip,  that  psy 
chology  gave  no  ground  whatever  for  supposing  that 
large  groups  of  human  beings  now  were  any  different 
from  what  they  always  had  been,  or  that  they  would 
act  differently  from  the  ways  in  which  they  had  acted 
in  the  past,  under  similar  conditions.  In  fact,  it  seemed 
to  me  that  psychology  proved  absolutely  the  reverse. 

The  result  was  that  I  wrote  an  article  and  gave  it  the 
name,  ''The  Mastery  of  the  World,"  because  the  con 
clusion  I  came  to  was  that  all  history  and  psychology 
and  the  physical  sciences  agreed  that,  instead  of  there 
being  less  chance  for  war  in  the  future,  there  was  more 
chance,  and  that  the  probabilities  were  that  some  "mon 
ster  of  efficiency"  would  some  day  get  control  of  the 
world,  as  Rome  did  nineteen  centuries  ago,  and  enforce 
peace  in  the  same  way  that  a  strong  municipal  govern 
ment  enforces  peace  in  a  city. 

This  article  appeared  in  The  North  American  Review, 
in  October,  1915.  I  followed  it  in  November  by  an  article 
called  "Naval  Principles,"  in  December  by  an  article 
called  "Naval  Preparedness,"  in  January  by  an  article 
called  "Naval  Policy,"  and  in  February  by  an 
article  called  "Naval  Defense."  All  these  articles  at- 


594     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

traded  a  great  deal  of  attention  from  the  newspapers, 
more  than  nine  tenths  of  which  was  favorable.  The  last 
three  articles  were  written  under  considerable  mental 
excitement,  because  I  had  become  more  and  more  con 
vinced  that  we  were  going  to  get  into  the  war,  and  more 
and  more  alarmed  at  our  incredible  delay.  The  articles 
were  all  devoted  to  showing  the  impossibility  of  pre 
paring  for  a  modern  war  except  by  following  plans 
which  had  been  carefully  laid  out  in  advance,  because  of 
the  confusion  that  had  always  been  inseparable  from 
making  preparations  in  a  hurry.  This  was  very  easy 
to  do,  because  it  was  merely  necessary  to  point  out  the 
confusion  in  the  first  part  of  our  Civil  War  and  Span 
ish  War. 

My  article  on  " Naval  Policy"  ended,  "Shall  the 
United  States  take  action  now  or  wait  until  it  is  too 
late!  Is  it  already  too  late!" 

Sunday.  Oct.  17.  ...  On  Oct.  16,  I  was  re-elected  President 
Naval  Institute  (5th  time)  this  time  unanimously. 

Oct.  21.  Popular  Science  Monthly  has  two  pages  by  Rear 
Admiral  Fiske,  being  a  quotation  from  my  1911  essay  in  Naval 
Institute  called  "Naval  Power,"  besides  a  full-page  picture  show 
ing  a  battleship  on  wheels  knocking  down  buildings  in  N.  Y. 
The  article  is  called  "If  Battleships  ran  on  Land." 

The  article  in  Popular  Science  Monthly,  illustrated 
as  it  was  by  a  very  exciting  and  realistic  picture,  at 
tracted  a  great  deal  of  attention.  It  was  copied  in 
some  English  papers  the  following  month.  During  the 
following  year  the  British  "tanks,"  or  "land  battle 
ships,"  appeared. 

Nov.  19.  Joined  Aero  Club  of  America,  a  highly  patriotic, 
farseeing  and  beneficient  organization. 

Dec.  25.  ...  I  had  a  most  unpleasant  interview  with  Secre 
tary  yesterday. 

My  interview  with  the  Secretary  was  due  to  my  call 
ing  on  him  with  reference  to  a  letter  which  I  had  re- 


MY  REPRIMAND  595 

ceived  from  him  in  answer  to  an  application  for  leave 
from  me.  It  had  been  the  custom  in  the  navy  for  many 
years  to  grant  an  officer  one  month's  leave  per  year  if 
he  could  be  spared,  and  in  case  leave  is  not  taken,  to  let 
the  leave  accumulate  up  to  three  months.  I  had  not 
had  any  leave  for  more  than  ten  years,  and  so  my  ap 
plication  was  perfectly  proper,  especially  as  I  was  go 
ing  to  retire  in  less  than  six  months,  and  was  not  doing 
any  duty  of  any  kind.  In  my  application  I  had  spoken 
of  my  wife's  delicate  health,  and  of  the  fact  that  as 
Newport  was  so  cold,  I  would  rather  spend  it  with 
her  farther  South.  The  Secretary's  answer  to  my  ap 
plication  granted  me  three  months'  leave  on  the  under 
standing  that  I  was  to  take  my  wife  South!  During 
my  call  I  explained  to  him  that  my  wife  did  not  want  to 
go  farther  South  than  Washington,  and  that  I  had  not 
had  any  leave  for  over  ten  years.  The  Secretary  finally 
said  I  might  have  leave  for  a  month.  As  I  turned  to  go, 
he  said  to  me  that  his  attention  had  been  called  to  an 
article  written  by  me  in  The  North  American  Review 
on  " Naval  Preparedness,"  and  that  if  I  had  not  been 
an  admiral,  he  would  have  me  court-martialed.  I  ex 
pressed  surprise,  and  said  that  he  himself  had  approved 
the  article,  and  not  only  that,  but  two  others.  He  re 
plied  that  he  thought  they  were  to  be  published  in  the 
Naval  Institute.  I  replied  that  I  had  not  intended  to 
publish  them  in  the  Naval  Institute,  and  had  not  writ 
ten  or  said  anything  to  give  that  impression.  I  added 
that  there  was  nothing  in  any  of  the  articles  that  was 
not  perfectly  well  known  to  naval  officers  and  army 
officers,  and  that  I  was  simply  trying  to  make  things 
clear  to  the  people.  He  answered  if  the  people  wanted 
to  know  about  the  navy,  they  should  go  to  the  head  of 
the  navy  for  their  information.  I  answered  that  I  could 
not  see  where  I  had  done  wrong,  and  that  certainly  I 
was  not  opposing  any  plans  for  improving  the  navy 
that  he  might  have,  or  the  President.  The  Secretary 
cut  short  the  interview  here  by  saying,  "You  cannot 


596     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

write  or  talk  any  more ;  you  can 't  even  say  that  two  and 
two  make  four." 

This  put  me  in  a  very  embarrassing  position,  as  I  had 
already  agreed  to  write  articles  for  Collier's  and  The 
North  American  Review,  and  had  accepted  an  invita 
tion  from  the  Commercial  Club  of  Chicago  to  go  out 
to  Chicago  and  explain  the  present  status  of  the  navy. 
Of  course  I  had  explained  to  these  organizations  that  I 
would  have  to  get  the  approval  of  the  secretary  for 
whatever  I  should  write  or  say ;  but  here  was  a  flat  order 
not  to  say  or  write  anything. 

Jan.  1. — 1916.  Saturday.  I  wrote  full  explanations  to  North 
Am.  Review  and  Collier's  that  I  would  have  to  fail  to  fulfill  my 
engagement  to  write  articles;  and  I  also  wrote  same  to  Com 
mercial  Club  of  Chicago,  that  had  asked  me  to  give  address  on 
facts  on  Jan.  15.  I  hear  from  them  each  that  a  fuss  is  going 
to  be  made.  Comm.  Club  telegraphed  expostulating  to  Prest; 
but  he  was  away,  and  his  Sec.  referred  matter  to  Sec.  Nav.  who 
up  to  Dec.  31st  had  not  answered  Club.  N.  Y.  Sun  asked  me 
to  write  300  words  on  naval  matters  for  issue  Jan.  1 ;  and  Marine 
League  of  U.  S.  A.  asked  me  to  make  after  dinner  speech  in 
Boston,  some  Tuesday  ev.  Chicago  Tribune  of  Dec.  31  pub 
lished  interview  with  Sec.  of  Commercial  Club  about  my  being 
ordered  not  to  make  the  speech — in  which  both  Sec.  of  the  Club 
and  the  paper  commented  adversely. 

Jan.  5  Sec.  Nav.  gave  out  yesterday  fact  of  my  being  re 
fused  permission  to  speak  before  Chicago  Commercial  Club — 
and  said  all  navy  officers  must  merely  back  up  civilian  policy 
and  not  try  to  influence  legislation. 

Jan.  6.  Washington  Post  has  fine  editorial  on  "operating 
the  Navy" — its  text  being  my  testimony  last  year.  It  urges 
Congress  to  act  on  it. 

Jan.  8.  Most  of  the  papers  this  morning  have  account  of  at 
tack  made  by  Repr.  Fred  A.  Britten  in  House  Naval  Committee 
on  Sec.  's  muzzling  Knight  and  me,  and  transferring  Sterling  and 
me  .  .  .  officers  who  testified  honestly  before  the  Naval  Com 
mittee,  away  from  Washington. 

Jan.  11.  Collier's  of  Jan.  15  that  came  out  yesterday  has 
editorial  called  "The  Muzzle  of  Josephus"  that  condemns 


LAN'D    BATTLESHIP 


MY  REPRIMAND  597 

roundly  his  course  towards  me.  Chicago  Tribune  of  Jan.  6  has 
long  letter  from  its  Wash,  correspondent  headed,  "Country 
Denied  Defense  Facts,"  and  it  has  on  Jan.  9  an  editorial  headed, 
"Censoring  Vital  Knowledge" — both  of  which  abuse  Sec.  Nav. 
roundly  for  muzzling  me. 

Jan.  12.  Sec.  Daniels  yesterday  denied  the  statements  in  Col 
lier's,  and  said  he  did  not  know  I  had  written  any  articles  for 
Collier's,  and  that  he  had  said  I  might  have  the  article  in 
N.  Am.  Review  published  if  he  had  already  approved,  etc. 
Also  he  gave  out  yesterday  p.  m.  that  he  has  given  me  1  mo. 
leave  with  no  restrictions.  He  did  not  say  he  had  granted  me 
3  mo.  on  condition  that  I  go  south  and  had  withdrawn  it  when 
I  said  I  did  not  want  to  go  south. 

Jan.  16.  Sunday.  Visit  from  F.  P.  Dunne  (Mr.  Dooley)  of 
Collier's  on  Thursday  &  Friday.  Visit  from  Henry  Reuterdahl 
the  marine  artist  on  Friday  and  luncheon  with  us  Saturday. 
Arranging  with  Dunne  to  get  Sec.  to  let  me  proceed  with 
articles.  .  .  .  Two  letters  from  Theodore  Roosevelt,  written  on 
Jan.  11 — one  typewritten — the  other  with  his  own  hand — highly 
commending  my  articles  that  came  out  in  North  American  Re 
view  &  asking  me  to  luncheon  at  Sagamore  Hill  on  Feb.  3.  I 
accepted. 

The  articles  which  Collier's  asked  me  to  write  were 
to  be  merely  descriptive  of  the  navy,  for  the  purpose 
of  interesting  the  public,  and  were  to  be  referred  to 
the  Secretary  for  his  approval  before  being  published. 
We  did  not  get  permission  to  publish  them. 

Jan.  18.  ...  told  me  this  p.  m.  that  Sec.  had  finally  signed 
the  "Administrative  Plan,"  that  I  tried  for  two  years  to  get  him 
to  sign,  on  May  18  last — 7  days  after  I  had  resigned ! ! ! ! 


CHAPTER  XXXIX 

MY   SECOND   TESTIMONY   AND   THE   SECKETAKY's   ATTACK 

ON    ME 


M 


Y  diary  says : 


Feb.  8.  Chief  of  Bureau  Navigation,  testified  before  House 
Naval  Committee  that  fleet  was  fully  manned,  etc.  Representa 
tive  Britten  cross  questioned  him  sharply  about  this  &  made 
him  admit  he  has  not  been  to  sea  for  5  years  &  had  never 
served  in  a  modern  battleship.  When  questioned  as  to  what 
Adm.  Fiske  meant  when  he  testified  Dec.  17,  1914,  that  it  would 
take  5  years  to  get  navy  ready,  he  answered  that  perhaps  he 
meant  it  would  take  him  5  years  to  do  it.  When  asked  what 
the  navy  thought  of  Fiske 's  qualifications,  he  answered  that  he 
was  considered  a  very  good  inventor!  Life  has  as  outside  pic 
ture — a  map  of  U.  S.  called  "New  Prussia,"  with  German 
names  to  the  towns,  etc. 

Feb.  11.     Sec.  Garrison  has  resigned!  .  .  . 

Feb.  20.  ...  Rec'd  letter  yesterday  from  Comdr.  J.  P.  Mor 
ton,  comdg  U.  S.  S.  Scorpion  at  Constantinople  saying  that  a 
British  officer,  belonging  to  the  British  fleet  in  the  ^Egean  Sea 
had  flown  over  the  land  into  the  Sea  of  Marmora  in  a  large 
hydroaeroplane  carrying  a  Whitehead  torpedo,  launched  the 
torpedo  at  a  Turkish  transport  and  sunk  it.  This  is  my  in 
vention,  patented  July  16,  1912.  Hurrah!  I  have  invented  a 
new  method  of  warfare,  and  it  is  successful. 

Feb.  27.  Sunday.  Adm.  Winslow  testified  before  Committee 
&  so  did  Badger.  Badger  was  ultra-conservative  &  compli 
mented  Sec.  for  being  first  to  publish  report  of  G.  B.,  etc. 
Winslow  was  very  frank  in  backing  me  up,  declaring  for  neces 
sity  of  Gen.  Staff,  etc. 

Mar.  5.  Sunday.  Navy  League  has  asked  me  to  make  the 
speech  on  a  Navy  General  Staff  at  convention  about  Apr.  10  in 
Washington.  I  do  not  think  Sec.  will  permit  me  to  do  it.  A.  & 

598 


MY  SECOND  TESTIMONY  599 

N.  Journal  says  Adm.  Benson  says  that  plans  made  by  office  of 
Naval  Operations  will  in  a  short  time  accomplish  all  that  by 
human  foresight  it  is  possible  to  do  by  any  system  that  could 
be  designed,  etc. 

March  13.  The  Secretary  has  finally  given  permission  for  me 
to  publish  Naval  Strategy  in  the  Naval  Institute,  but  he  has 
stricken  out  the  last  5  pages,  which  were  the  conclusions  to 
which  the  reasoning  led ! ! 

Mar.  17.  The  Naval  Institute  accepted  my  article  "Naval 
Strategy"  the  same  day  they  received  it  &  sent  it  to  the  printer 
with  orders  to  print  it  at  once,  so  as  to  publish  it  in  the  next 
Proceedings,  the  March-April  number. 

Mar.  25.  Appeared  before  House  Naval  Committee  yester 
day.  Hearing  lasted  from  10.30  a.  m.  till  close  of  hours  (4.30) 
with  intermission  for  lunch.  Papers  last  night  &  this  morning 
gave  considerable  space,  but  do  not  state  the  matter  correctly. 
They  exaggerate  what  I  said  about  the  necessity  for  military 
control  of  the  navy  &  emphasize  unduly  the  personal  relations 
between  the  Secretary  and  me.  ...  I  described  how  I  had 
brought  about  the  office  of  Ch.  Nav.  Op.  &  that  Sec.  had  induced 
Gen.  Bd.  to  strike  out  recommendation  for  19,600  men. 

Mar.  27.  Spent  forenoon  before  House  Naval  Committee. 
The  parts  of  my  testimony  that  have  attracted  attention  are  that 
German  navy  is  twice  as  effective  as  ours,  that  our  present  sys 
tem  causes  loss  of  25%  in  efficiency  or  money — the  two  being  the 
same  in  the  end — &  that  I  resigned  because  I  differed  with  Sec. 
Nav.  as  to  preparedness. 

My  testimony  before  the  House  Naval  Committee  on 
March  24  and  March  26  brought  out  some  interesting  sit 
uations.  Shortly  after  the  Congress  passed  the  Naval 
Appropriation  Bill  on  March  4  of  the  previous  year, 
1915,  which  contained  the  provision  for  a  chief  of  naval 
operations,  but  with  certain  important  parts  left  out,  I 
was  informed  by  an  influential  member  of  the  committee 
that  there  were  a  number  of  men  on  the  committee  who 
were  in  favor  of  a  general  staff,  and  that  they  would  in 
sist  upon  my  being  called  before  the  committee  in  1916. 
For  this  reason  I  had  been  preparing  myself  for  the  or 
deal  for  more  than  a  year.  I  knew  that  there  were  a 


600     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

number  of  the  committee  who  would  oppose  my  being 
called,  and  I  was  told  that  the  secretary  opposed  it 
strongly.  I  was  told  shortly  before  I  was  finally  called 
that  the  men  on  the  committee  who  wished  me  to  be 
called  finally  brought  it  about  by  accusing  the  other  mem 
bers  of  the  committee  of  being  afraid  of  having  me 
called,  because  I  would  tell  some  unpleasant  truths. 

During  the  two  days  when  I  was  testifying  I  noticed 
a  great  deal  of  difference  between  the  attitude  of  the 
members  on  this  occasion  and  on  the  occasion  when  I  had 
testified  before,  December  17,  1914.  On  the  earlier  oc 
casion  I  had  found  an  almost  incredible  ignorance  on  the 
part  of  nearly  all  the  committee  about  vital  questions 
which  they,  and  they  only,  were  to  decide;  but  an  almost 
incredible  open-mindedness  also.  On  the  second  occasion 
the  members  of  the  committee  were  somewhat  better  pre 
pared  in  the  matter  of  knowledge  to  discharge  their  highly 
responsible  duties  than  they  had  been  before,  but  they 
were  not  nearly  so  open-minded.  I  should  not  like  to 
believe  that  they  were  influenced  by  politics,  but  it 
seemed  to  me  that  the  Eepublicans  approved  of  the  ideas 
which  I  advanced  and  that  the  Democrats  opposed  them. 
I  had  always  admired  Mr.  Padgett,  the  Chairman  of  the 
committee,  and  I  had  him  at  my  house  for  dinner  only  a 
few  nights  before.  On  December  17,  1914,  he  had  shown 
a  perfectly  open  mind,  but  on  the  second  occasion  he 
seemed  to  be  trying  to  "trip  me  up"  whenever  he  got  a 
chance.  He  did  not  seem  to  be  trying  to  bring  out  the 
real  facts  as  to  a  general  staff,  but  to  be  making  a  covert 
fight  against  it. 

The  main  point  that  I  tried  to  bring  out  was  the  neces 
sity  for  incorporating  in  the  naval  appropriation  bill 
certain  provisions  relating  to  the  detail  of  at  least  fif 
teen  assistants  in  the  office  of  naval  operations  that 
had  been  left  out  of  the  previous  appropriation  bill 
after  having  been  incorporated  in  it  by  the  committee. 
Another  matter  which  I  emphasized  almost  as  strongly 
was  the  necessity  of  paying  much  more  attention  to 


TESTIMONY  AS  TO  AERONAUTICS        601 

aeronautics.  I  had  noticed  with  dismay  that  nearly  all 
the  work  which  I  had  done  in  establishing  a  Division  of 
Aeronautics  and  in  developing  naval  aeronautics  was  not 
being  pushed. 

In  fact,  it  seemed  to  me  that  the  Division  of  Aeronaut 
ics,  which  I  had  got  established  with  great  difficulty,  was 
virtually  abolished,  and  that  aeronautics  was  in  danger 
of  being  starved  to  death  by  the  inaction  of  the  depart 
ment.  In  the  Secretary's  annual  report,  dated  December 
1,  1915,  three  months  before,  was  the  passage,  "Two  mil 
lion  dollars  will  be  needed  for  the  next  year,  and  has  been 
asked  for  in  the  estimates." 

For  some  curious  reason  little  attention  was  paid  to 
my  testimony  as  to  aeronautics,  though  aeronautics  was 
obviously  our  one  hopeful  chance.  In  the  record  of  my 
testimony  is  the  passage : 

Mr.  Britten.  The  recommendation  of  the  General  Board  for 
$5,000,000  was  cut  to  $2,000,000  by  the  Secretary.  .  .  .  Will  you 
tell  us  please,  if  $5,000,000,  in  your  opinion,  is  too  much,  and 
why?  I  will  say  to  you,  before  you  start  to  answer,  that  Capt. 
Bristol's  estimate  was  over  $7,000,000. 

Admiral  Fiske.  Yes,  I  remember  that  very  well.  His  esti 
mate  was  originally  for  $13,000,000,  was  it  not? 

Mr.  Britten.     Yes. 

I  then  described  the  value  of  aeroplanes,  and  said 
"aeronautics  is  the  thing  on  which  we  can  get  to  work 
quicker,  and  by  which  we  can  accomplish  more  than  by 
anything  else."  Finally: 

Mr.   Britten.     Admiral,   you   did   not   answer   my   question 
whether  $5,000,000  was  too  much  or  not  enough  ? 
Admiral  Fiske.     It  is  not  enough. 

The  appropriation  bill,  when  finally  passed,  allotted 
$3,500,000,  for  aeronautics.  It  also  contained  the  re 
placement  of  most  of  the  original  features  in  the  provision 
establishing  the  office  of  chief  of  naval  operations  that  I 
had  urged. 


602     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIRAL 
My  diary  says : 

Apr.  3.  Sec.  testified  today.  Roasted  me  in  the  afternoon: 
said  I  was  not  in  harmony  with  Department,  &  that  he  would 
have  asked  me  to  resign,  if  I  had  not  done  so. 

Apr.  4.  The  morning  papers  give  considerable  space  to  the 
See's  attack  on  me.  I  held  conference  in  forenoon  &  evening 
with  Admirals  Schroeder,  Wainwright  &  Osterhaus  at  Schroed- 
er's  house.  We  agreed  best  thing  is  for  me  to  write  to  Naval 
Committee,  requesting  permission  to  appear  &  refute  See's  testi 
mony. 

It  had  always  been  the  custom  for  the  Secretary  of  the 
Navy  to  be  the  first  to  testify  before  the  House  Commit 
tee,  but  on  this  occasion  the  Secretary  was  the  last. 

The  following  account  of  the  Secretary's  testimony  is 
taken  from  the  New  York  Herald,  on  April  4 : 

Just  before  the  hearings  on  the  naval  bill  came  to  a  close 
before  the  House  Committee  on  Naval  Affairs  today  Josephus 
Daniels,  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  took  occasion  to  bring  about  a 
final  airing  of  his  personal  differences  with  Rear  Admiral  Brad 
ley  A.  Fiske,  U.  S.  N.,  one-time  Aid  for  Operations.  Mr.  Daniels, 
in  answer  to  questions  propounded  by  Representative  Lemuel 
P.  Padgett,  of  Tennessee,  chairman  of  the  committee,  tried  to 
impress  the  committee  with  the  fact  that  Rear  Admiral  Fiske 
in  criticising  the  situation  in  the  navy  and  its  lack  of  prepared 
ness,  was  moved  by  personal  grievances  rather  than  by  higher 
motives. 

One  of  the  causes  of  differences,  the  Secretary  said,  was  his 
issuance  of  the  order  barring  wine  from  the  officers'  mess.  Rear 
Admiral  Fiske,  he  stated,  had  protested  against  this.  Then, 
to  cap  the  climax,  he  said : 

Rear  Admiral  Fiske  told  me  that  if  the  officers  were  deprived 
of  their  wine  they  could  take  to  cocaine. 

The  Secretary  then  went  on  to  give  further  details  of  his 
relations  with  the  Rear  Admiral. 

RAISES  ISSUE   OF  VERACITY 

In  one  instance  a  direct  issue  of  veracity  was  raised.  Rear 
Admiral  Fiske  told  the  committee  that  he  acted  as  the  personal 


SECRETARY'S  ATTACK  ON  ME  603 

messenger  of  the  Secretary  when  he  sent  word  that  he  desired 
the  General  Board  to  suppress  its  recommendations  with  respect 
to  increased  personnel  of  the  navy. 

Today,  Mr.  Daniels  said : 

"I  never  told  the  General  Board  to  do  anything  in  my  life." 

"The  Secretary's  broadside  at  the  officer  all  occurred  in  the 
last  few  minutes  of  the  hearing. 

Mr.  Daniels  also  contradicted  in  some  degree  the  statement  of 
Rear  Admiral  Fiske  with  regard  to  his  failure  to  be  appointed 
to  the  General  Board.  The  Secretary  said  it  was  true  that 
Admiral  George  Dewey  had  recommended  the  appointment  of 
the  officer  to  the  Board,  but  he  had  afterwards  changed  his  mind, 
saying  he  thought  Rear  Admiral  Fiske  too  "theoretical"  for  this 
post  and  that  a  more  practical  man  should  be  appointed  to  it. 

The  thing  the  Secretary  wanted  to  emphasize  most,  it  ap 
peared,  was  his  contention  that  the  Rear  Admiral's  troubles 
with  the  civilian  head  of  the  department,  arose  long  before  the 
question  of  preparedness  became  acute ;  that  when  Rear  Admiral 
Charles  J.  Badger  was  about  to  retire  Rear  Admiral  Fiske  im 
portuned  the  Secretary  "a  dozen  times"  that  he  be  made  com 
mander  in  chief  of  the  Atlantic  fleet;  that  when  it  was  sug 
gested  that  Rear  Admiral  Fletcher,  now  Admiral,  might  be 
available  for  the  appointment  of  commander  of  the  fleet,  Rear 
Admiral  Fiske  stated  that  he  would  not  desire  the  place  and 
would  refuse  it  if  it  was  offered  to  him;  whereupon,  according 
to  Mr.  Daniels,  the  Secretary  wrote  and  offered  the  place  to 
Rear  Admiral  Fletcher  and  he  was  glad  to  accept  the  appoint 
ment. 

Also,  the  Secretary  explained  that  the  real  issue  between  him 
self  and  Rear  Admiral  Fiske  was  whether  the  navy  should  be 
operated  under  the  ideals  of  the  Old  World  or  of  America. 

"He  told  me,  not  once,  but  five  times,"  said  the  Secretary, 
"that  if  we  did  not  follow  the  principle  of  militarism  and  put 
men  at  the  head  of  the  navy  whose  fathers  and  grandfathers 
had  been  naval  officers,  we  would  never  attain  any  degree  of 
preparedness. ' ' 

Apr.  5.  N.  Y.  Sun  &  World  say  editorially  I  must  reply  to 
Sec.  Herald  has  editorial  taking  my  side  against  Sec.  Nav.  I 
must  defend  myself.  Fortunately  that  is  easy. 


604     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAE-ADMIEAL 

After  my  meeting  with  Schroeder,  Wainwright,  and 
Osterhaus,  I  prepared  a  letter  to  House  Naval  Committee. 
We  had  a  meeting  the  following  morning,  April  5,  at 
which  I  read  my  letter  to  them.  They  suggested  a  few 
minor  changes  in  it,  which  I  made.  At  their  suggestion 
I  handed  this  personally  to  the  secretary  of  the  House 
Naval  Committee. 

My  letter  read  as  follows: 

Washington,  D.  C. 

April  5,  1916. 
To  the  Naval  Committee, 

House  of  Representatives, 
Hon.  Lemuel  P.  Padgett,  Chairman. 
Gentlemen: 

Referring  to  my  testimony  given  before  the  Naval  Committee 
on  March  24  and  26,  to  the  testimony  given  on  April  3  by  the 
Honorable  Secretary  of  the  Navy  and  the  editorials  in  this 
morning's  issue  of  the  New  York  World,  Sun  and  Herald,  I  beg 
leave  to  request  your  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  testimony 
of  the  Secretary  has  cast  a  serious  cloud  on  mine. 

For  this  reason  I  respectfully  request  permission  to  appear 
before  the  committee  to  explain  certain  occurrences  concerning 
which  I  fear  that  the  Secretary's  memory  had  led  him  to  do  me 
great  injustice. 

According  to  all  the  papers  that  I  have  seen,  the  Secretary 
said  that  I  told  him  that  if  naval  officers  were  deprived  of  their 
wine  they  would  take  cocaine.  It  is  true  that  I  tried  to  per 
suade  the  Secretary  not  to  prohibit  wine  and  beer;  spirituous 
liquors  had  'been,  forbidden  by  law  for  fifty  years.  My  argu 
ments  were  expressed  in  a  closely  typewritten  letter  to  him,  four 
pages  long,  dated  May  27,  1914,  and  covered  many  points.  It 
would  be  necessary  to  read  this  entire  letter  to  get  a  correct  idea 
of  what  I  told  the  Secretary.  I  should  like  to  show  a  copy  of  the 
letter  to  the  committee. 

I  did  not  know  that  my  letter  caused  any  unpleasantness  be 
tween  the  Secretary  and  me.  It  caused  no  unpleasant  feeling  on 
my  part  toward  the  Secretary,  because  I  felt  that  he  was  act 
ing  according  to  his  convictions. 

In  the  matter  of  desiring  to  be  commander  in  chief  of  the 
Atlantic  fleet,  I  did  make  application  for  the  command.  Such 


MY  LETTER  IN  DEFENSE  605 

an  application  was  perfectly  proper,  as  I  had  served  success 
fully  in  command  of  three  divisions  at  different  times  and  was 
then  aid  for  operations,  which  many  officers  thought  a  more 
important  position. 

I  wish  an  opportunity,  however,  to  convince  the  committee 
that  I  did  not  tell  the  Secretary  that  Fletcher  did  not  want  the 
command;  the  Secretary's  memory  leads  him  into  error  there. 
What  I  did  tell  the  Secretary  was  that  Fletcher  had  told  me 
some  time  before  that  he  thought  the  natural  thing  to  do  when 
Admiral  Badger  gave  up  the  command  was  to  give  it  to  me,  make 
Fletcher  aid  for  operations  and  then  make  Fletcher  commander 
in  chief  when  I  retired,  Fletcher  being  eighteen  months  younger 
than  I  and  my  junior  in  rank. 

I  find  the  following  entry  in  my  diary  on  the  date  of  April 
30,  1914 : 

"Secretary  of  the  Navy,  in  accordance  with  my  request,  tele 
graphed  Fletcher  asking  him  if  he  would  like  to  change  places 
with  me. ' ' 

Fletcher  was  then  in  Mexico  in  command  of  the  first  divi 
sion,  which  I  had  commanded  a  year  and  a  half  before;  and 
Admiral  Winslow,  my  junior,  also  a  candidate  for  the  position 
of  commander  in  chief,  was  also  in  Mexico,  in  command  of  the 
special  service  squadron.  It  will  be  seen  that  at  my  request  I 
was  to  leave  Washington,  give  up  altogether  my  position  as  aid 
for  operations  and  take  a  much  lower  place — a  subordinate  posi 
tion  in  the  fleet  in  Mexico  as  commander  of  the  first  division. 
Surely  this  was  not  pressing  my  claims  unduly,  but  rather 
the  reverse. 

I  find  an  entry  in  my  diary  of  May  1 — 

"Fletcher  answered  above  despatch,  saying  that  he  would  not 
like  to  become  aid  for  operations,  as  he  wished  to  succeed  the 
present  commander  in  chief." 

I  was  greatly  surprised  but  Fletcher  has  explained  to  me  since 
why  he  changed  his  mind.  It  is  needless  to  state  that  Fletcher 's 
reasons  were  perfectly  satisfactory  to  me. 

I  find  in  my  diary  under  date  of  June  15,  1914, 

' '  Secretary  of  the  Navy  told  me  the  accounts  published  in  the 
morning  papers  were  correct ;  that  he  is  going  to  make  Fletcher 
commander  in  chief.  I  told  him  I  could  make  no  objection,  that 
I  had  continually  praised  Fletcher  as  a  fine  admiral  and  that  he 
could  make  no  mistake  in  making  Fletcher  commander  in  chief. ' ' 


606     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

I  have  never  had  the  slightest  ill  feeling  about  this  episode,  and 
I  have  told  every  one  to  whom  I  have  talked  about  it  that  if 
I  had  been  in  the  Secretary's  place  I  would  have  appointed 
Fletcher  because  he  had  made  good  in  important  practical  work 
in  Mexico.  For  many  years  Fletcher  and  I  have  been  close 
friends,  and  we  are  so  still. 

As  to  my  telling  the  Secretary,  not  once  but  many  times,  that 
"if  we  did  not  put  men  at  the  head  of  the  navy  whose  fathers 
and  grandfathers  had  been  in  the  service,  we  would  never  be 
able  to  obtain  any  degree  of  preparedness,"  I  have  never  en 
tertained  such  ideas;  my  father  was  a  clergyman,  and  not  one 
of  my  paternal  ancestors  for  more  than  four  hundred  years 
had  been  in  the  army  or  navy.  My  maternal  uncle  was  in  the 
navy,  but  he  was  killed  at  the  age  of  eighteen ;  and  my  maternal 
grandfather  was  an  army  officer  in  his  early  days,  but  resigned 
and  went  into  the  lumber  business. 

I  do  not  remember  any  other  army  or  navy  relatives,  and  I 
am  not  a  militarist  or  a  believer  in  caste.  What  I  did  tell  the 
Secretary  was  that  countries  like  Germany  and  Japan  have  aims 
and  ideals  different  from  ours;  that  in  those  countries  every 
man  is  in  a  measure  military,  as  his  father  and  grandfather 
were  before  him,  and  that  such  nations  naturally  have  a  greater 
military  spirit  and  a  greater  military  ability  than  nations  like 
ours. 

Referring  to  that  part  of  the  Secretary's  testimony  that  bears 
on  my  testimony  that  the  Secretary  directed  the  omission  of  a 
recommendation  of  19,600  men  from  the  General  Board's  report 
of  December,  1914,  I  should  like  an  opportunity  to  convince  the 
committee  of  the  correctness  of  my  recollection  by  showing  the 
entries  made  in  my  diary  at  the  time. 

Very  respectfully, 

B.  A.  FISKE, 
Rear  Admiral,  United  States  Navy. 

Apr.  6.  Navy  League  has  ordered  2500  copies  of  my  "Naval 
Strategy"  &  asked  me  to  read  it  before  the  convention  next 
month,  &  has  put  my  name  on  program  to  read  it.  Of  course,  I 
am  forbidden  to  speak  at  all  on  Preparedness !  So  some  one  else 
will  have  to  read  it. 

Apr.  7.  N.  Y.  Herald,  Times,  Sun,  Tribune  &  American — 
also  Wash.  Post  (doubtless  practically  all  big  papers)  have  long 


NAVY  LEAGUE  CONVENTION      607 

scare-head  accounts  of  my  letter  to  House  Naval  Committee, 
quoting  it  almost  in  full.  .  .  .  Lots  of  letters  from  friends 
about  it. 

Apr.  8.  I  rec'd  Mr.  Padgett's  letter,  saying  Naval  Com 
mittee  would  not  call  me,  but  I  may  send  copy  of  my  letter 
of  May  27,  1914,  expostulating  about  the  See's  wine  mess  order 
&  he  will  print  it  in  the  hearings.  So  I  wrote  to  Sec.,  asking 
for  a  copy  of  it  &  wrote  Padgett,  telling  him  I  had  done  so. 
Lots  of  congratulatory  letters  from  friends. 

Apr.  11.  .  .  .  Repr.  Gardner  in  his  Navy  League  speech 
ended  "Bradley  Fiske,  I  salute  you  as  our  Arnold  von  Winkel- 
reid." 

Apr.  12.  At  meeting  of  Navy  League  this  a.  m.,  Col.  Thomp 
son,  the  Prest.  of  League  read  a  letter  from  Sec.  Nav  declining 
to  permit  me  to  read  my  paper  on  "Naval  Strategy"  published 
in  March-April  Naval  Institute.  Col.  Thompson  made  eloquent 
speech  denouncing  See's  act,  &  was  followed  by  W.  S.  Stayton 
on  same  lines,  but  bitter.  Stayton  was  followed  by  Henry 
Reuterdahl,  the  artist,  in  really  an  oratorical  outburst — at  the 
conclusion  of  which  all  the  audience  rose  &  cheered  me !  Mayor 
Lewis  of  Forest  City,  Ills,  read  my  paper.  When  he  started, 
Stayton  asked  audience  to  act  as  if  he  were  Adm.  Fiske,  & 
they  all  got  up  and  cheered  again ! !  Very  nerve-racking  to 
me! 

Apr.  13.  Morning  papers  devote  considerable  space  &  head 
lines  to  demonstration  of  cheers  &  hisses  at  Navy  League  yester 
day.  Senate  yesterday  p.  m.  adopted  unanimously  a  resolution 
proposed  by  Senator  Lodge  "directing"  Sec.  Nav.  to  send  to 
Senate  Gen.  Board's  letter  of  Aug.  3,  1914,  urging  getting 
navy  ready  &  my  letter  to  Sec.  of  Nov.  9,  1914,1  reporting  navy 
unprepared  for  war ! !  Papers  mention  it. 

Apr.  15.  Rec'd  from  Dept.  a  letter  enclosing  a  photo  copy  of 
my  letter  expostulating  against  using  the  Wine  Mess  Order. 
Took  it  down  to  Naval  Committee  with  a  letter  of  transmittal 
from  me,  &  handed  it  to  the  Sec.  of  the  Committee. 

This  letter  was  very  long,  and  analyzed  the  whole  sobri 
ety  question  as  related  to  the  navy.  It  dealt  also  with  the 
letter  from  the  surgeon-general,  which  seemed  to  me  an 
insult  to  navy  officers,  because  it  represented  them  as 

i  See  page  555. 


608     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

being  much  less  sober  than  the  enlisted  men.  My  letter 
pointed  out  also  that  whatever  lapses  from  sobriety  oc 
curred,  occurred  in  almost  every  case  when  on  shore 
leave,  away  from  the  restrictions  of  naval  life,  so  that 
the  Secretary's  order  would  not  affect  the  real  trouble. 
It  also  predicted  that  the  issuing  of  the  order  would  not 
decrease  drunkenness.  My  information  is  that  this  pre 
diction  has  been  fulfilled.  In  the  middle  of  paragraph 
ten  was  the  sentence,  "  Another  effect  would  be  an  in 
creased  temptation  to  use  cocaine  and  other  drugs. ' ' 

Apr.  17.  Called  on  Admiral  Dewey,  &  he  stated  in  the  most 
emphatic  terms  that  the  statement  to  House  Naval  Committee 
made  by  Sec.  Nav.  in  his  recent  testimony  to  the  effect  that 
Dewey  had  asked  Sec.  not  to  keep  me  on  Gen.  Bd.,  as  he  wanted 
a  practical  man  and  not  a  theoretical  man  was  utterly  in 
error ! !  Dewey  also  told  me  that  he  was  telling  this  broadcast. 
Several  officers  had  told  me  of  this. 

The  statement  of  the  Secretary  as  printed  in  the  offi 
cial  report  of  his  testimony  was  as  follows : 

"Later  Admiral  Dewey  requested  me  not  to  put  Admiral 
Fiske  on  the  General  Board.  He  said  he  wanted  a  practical 
man ;  that  Fiske  was  too  theoretical ;  and  I  did  not  put  him  on. ' ' 

This  statement  surprised  me  for  the  reason  that  I  had 
served  twice  on  the  General  Board  and  Admiral  Dewey 
had  given  me  the  mark  4  (the  perfect  mark)  on  every 
semi-annual  efficiency  report;  and  his  request  that  I  be 
retained  on  the  board  after  being  relieved  as  aid  for 
operations,  had  been  made  without  any  suggestion  from 
me.  Furthermore  he  had  put  my  name  in  a  short  list  of 
officers  whom  he  had  mentioned  for  " heroic  conduct" 
at  the  Battle  of  Manila  and  had  taken  occasion  many 
times  while  I  was  on  the  board  to  compliment  me  on  my 
abilites  and  conduct.  So  I  was  not  surprised  when  I 
heard  that  Admiral  Dewey  was  denying  the  statement 
attributed  to  him. 

Finally,  after  several  officers  had  told  me  that  Dewey 


ADMIRAL  DEWEY'S  STATEMENT          609 

was  denying  it,  I  went  to  his  office  to  ask  him  face  to 
face  if  he  had  done  so.  When  he  saw  me  coming  in  at 
the  door  he  rose  from  his  chair  (in  the  presence  of  his 
aid,  Lieut.  Commander  Le  Breton)  and  advanced  to 
wards  me  with  both  hands  outstretched,  saying, 

' '  Fiske,  I  never  said  it,  I  never  said  it.  No  communica 
tion  passed  between  the  Secretary  and  me  about  your 
staying  on  the  board  except  when  you  were  present,  and 
you  heard  me  tell  the  Secretary  that  I  wanted  you  to 
stay." 


CHAPTEE  XL 

UNPREPAREDNESS   LETTER,   LETTER   OF   PRESIDENT,   AND 
RETIREMENT 

APR.  19.  ...  Telephone  message  from  See's  Aid  said  my 
preparedness  letter  cannot  be  found !     I  sent  a  copy,  which 
was  copied  and  returned. 

Apr.  23.  ...  All  the  papers  (I  believe)  print  my  Unpre- 
paredness  letter  practically  in  full.  Sec.  transmitted  it  to 
Senate  yesterday  with  a  letter,  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 

The  Secretary's  letter  read  as  follows: 

The  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
Washington,  D.  C.,  April  21,  1916. 
To  the  Senate: 

I  am  in  receipt  of  the  resolution  adopted  by  the  Senate  on 
April  12,  1916,  calling  for— 

(1)  A  communication,  dated  August  3,  1914,  from  the  Gen 
eral  Board  of  the  Navy  warning  the  Navy  Department  of  the 
necessity  of  bringing  the  Navy  to  a  state  of  preparedness. 

(2)  A  communication,  dated  November  9,  1914,  from  Rear 
Admiral   Bradley  A.   Fiske,   senior   adviser  to  the   Secretary, 
warning  the  Navy  Department  of  the  unprepared  state  of  the 
Navy, 

Upon  receipt  of  this  resolution,  diligent  search  was  made 
in  the  files  of  the  Department  for  the  communications  desired. 
That  dated  November  9,  1914,  from  Rear  Admiral  Fiske,  is  ap 
pended  hereto.  The  chief  clerk  was  unable  to  find  it  in  his  files, 
it  having  been  withdrawn  by  an  officer  who  "looked  it  up  sev 
eral  times  but  could  not  find  it. ' '  However,  the  copy  herewith 
transmitted  was  furnished  the  Department  by  Admiral  Fiske  at 
my  request. 

This  communication  was  not  furnished  me,  and  I  did  not  know 
of  its  existence  until  long  after  it  was  written.  I  find  upon 
inquiry  that  it  was  filed  with  the  chief  clerk,  without  my  knowl- 

610 


UNPEEPAEEDNESS  LETTER  611 

edge  that  it  had  been  written.  Although  Rear  Admiral  Fiske 
was  in  my  office  daily,  he  did  not  tell  me  he  had  placed  the  com 
munication  on  file.  His  article  was  written  after  the  estimates 
for  the  Navy,  as  required  by  law,  had  been  submitted,  and  I 
was  left  in  ignorance  of  its  existence,  while  Congress  was  con 
sidering  legislation  for  the  increase  of  the  Navy,  and  actually 
enacting  legislation  which  has  secured  the  best  organization 
the  Navy  Department  has  enjoyed  in  its  history.  I  was  greatly 
surprised  when  I  learned  that  a  communication  deemed  im 
portant  enough  now  to  be  the  subject  of  a  Senate  resolution 
was  not  considered  by  its  author  of  sufficient  importance  for 
him  to  present  in  person  to  me,  instead  of  depositing  it,  with 
out  acquainting  me  of  his  action,  in  the  files  of  the  Navy 
Department. 

We  were  unable  to  find  any  communication  such  as  that  de 
scribed  in  the  resolution,  from  the  General  Board  under  date 
of  August  3,  1914,  though  our  files  contained  a  letter  of  two 
days  previous  not  bearing  upon  the  subject  mentioned  in  your 
resolution.  I  therefore  addressed  the  following  letter  to  Admiral 
Dewey,  president  of  the  General  Board: 

SECRETARY 's  LETTER  TO  DEWEY 

April  17,  1916. 

My  dear  Admiral  Dewey :  I  am  in  receipt  of  a  resolution  from 
the  Senate  requesting  me  to  send  "a  communication,  dated 
August  3,  1914,  from  the  General  Board  of  the  Navy,  warning 
the  Navy  Department  of  the  necessity  of  bringing  the  Navy  to  a 
state  of  preparedness. 

I  have  made  a  careful  examination  of  the  files  of  the  Navy 
Department  and  have  not  been  able  to  find  any  such  communica 
tion.  If  the  General  Board  has  such  a  communication  of  that 
date,  won't  you  please  send  me  a  copy? 

Sincerely  yours, 

JOSEPHUS  DANIELS. 
Admiral  George  Dewey, 

President  of  the  General  Board,  Washington. 
In  response  to  this  inquiry,  I  received  the  following  letter  from 
Admiral  Dewey: 

Office  of  the  Admiral  of  the  Navy, 

Washington,  April  18,  1916. 
My  dear  Mr.  Secretary:: — I  am  in  receipt  of  your  letter  of 


612     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

the  17th  inst.  asking  me  to  send  you  a  communication  from  the 
General  Board,  dated  August  3,  1914,  "warning  the  Navy  De 
partment  of  the  necessity  of  bringing  the  Navy  to  a  state  of 
preparedness. ' ' 

There  is  no  letter  or  recommendation  from  the  General  Board 
bearing  the  date  of  August  3,  1914.  I  find  however,  that  on 
August  1,  1914,  a  special  meeting  was  called  at  the  request 
of  Rear  Admiral  Fiske,  aid  for  operations,  to  consider  the  with 
drawal  of  battleships  from  Mexican  waters  to  their  home  yards. 
A  letter  adopted  at  this  meeting,  and  bearing  its  date,  was 
signed  by  Rear  Admiral  Knight,  senior  member  present,  a  copy 
of  which  is  forwarded  herewith. 

You  will  note  that  this  is  a  confidential  communication,  and 
as  it  bears  intimately  upon  our  policy  with  regard  to  certain 
foreign  powers  I  do  not  think  it  advisable  that  it  should  be 
given  to  the  public. 

Sincerely  yours, 

GEORGE  DEWET. 
HON.  JOSEPHUS  DANIELS, 

Secretary  of  the  Navy. 

It  will  be  noted  that  Admiral  Dewey  states  the  communication 
of  August  1,  1914,  "bears  intimately  upon  our  policy  with  re 
gard  to  certain  foreign  powers,"  and  that  he  does  "not  think 
it  advisable  that  it  should  be  given  to  the  public."  In  view  of 
this  statement  of  Admiral  Dewey  and  of  the  fact  that  the  letter 
of  August  1,  1914,  does  not  refer  to  "the  necessity  of  bringing 
the  Navy  to  a  state  of  preparedness, ' '  as  stated  in  the  resolution 
adopted  by  your  body,  it  does  not  appear  to  be  in  the  public  in 
terest  to  transmit  the  confidential  communication  of  the  General 
Board  of  August  1,  1914.  No  other  report  from  the  General 
Board  touching  preparedness  has  been  received  except  those 
published  as  appendices  to  my  reports  and  in  my  hearing  before 
the  House  Committee  on  Naval  Affairs. 

Respectfully, 

JOSEPHUS  DANIELS. 
The  Senate  of  the  United  States, 

Washington,  D.  C. 

Apr.  29.  ...  Army  &  Navy  Journal  has  editorial  "Admiral 
Fiske  &  the  Secretary,"  saying  a  naval  correspondent  says  so 
and  so — recounting  facts  stated  by  him,  showing  I  did  show 
Sec.  the  Unpreparedness  Letter. 


UNPREPAREDNESS  LETTER  613 

From  Washington,  I  returned  to  the  war  college.  Then 
I  wrote  the  following  letter : 

U.  S.  Navy  War  College, 
Newport,  R.  L,  April  29, 1916. 

To  the  President  of  the  Senate: 

In  a  communication  to  the  Senate,  dated  April  21,  1916, 
transmitting  a  copy  of  a  letter  dated  Nov.  9,  1914,  to  the  Navy 
Department  from  me  as  Aid  for  Operations,  the  Secretary  of 
the  Navy  makes  the  following  statement: 

"This  communication  was  not  furnished  me,  and  I  did  not 
know  of  its  existence  until  long  after  it  was  written.  I  find 
upon  inquiry  that  it  was  filed  with  the  chief  clerk,  without 
my  knowledge  that  it  had  been  written.  Although  Rear  Ad 
miral  Fiske  was  in  my  office  daily,  he  did  not  tell  me  he  had 
placed  the  communication  on  file.  His  article  was  written 
after  the  estimates  for  the  Navy,  as  required  by  law,  had  been 
submitted;  and  I  was  left  in  ignorance  of  its  existence,  while 
Congress  was  considering  legislation  for  the  increase  of  the 
Navy,  and  actually  enacting  legislation  which  has  secured  the 
best  organization  the  Navy  Department  has  enjoyed  in  its 
history.  I  was  greatly  surprised  when  I  learned  that  a  com 
munication  deemed  important  enough  now  to  be  the  subject 
of  a  Senate  resolution  was  not  considered  by  its  author  of  suffi 
cient  importance  for  him  to  present  in  person  to  me,  instead  of 
depositing  it,  without  acquainting  me  of  his  action,  in  the  files 
of  the  Navy  Department." 

2.  This  statement  constituted  an  accusation  against  me  of  a 
grave  breach   of  official  propriety — in   fact,   of  actual  under- 
handedness — of  an  attempt  to  conceal  an  important  letter  from 
the  Secretary;  while  as  a  matter  of  fact,  I  was  always  scrupu 
lously  careful  never  to  permit  him  to  receive,  or  to  remain  under, 
any  mistaken  impression,  or  to  be  in  ignorance  of  any  important 
matter,  if  I  could  prevent  it. 

3.  The  statement  appeared  in  the  New  York  Herald  and  in 
many  other  papers  on  April  23,  1916,  and  injured  my  reputa 
tion  for  fair  dealing. 

4.  For  this  reason  I  respectfully  request  permission  to  ap 
pear  before  such  persons  as  you  may  designate,  and  state  facts 
which  I  and  other  officers  remember  very  clearly,  and  which 
are  noted  in  my  diary,  showing  that  there  has  been  a  lapse  of 


614     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

memory  on  the  part  of  the  Secretary.     In  particular,  I  wish  to 
show  the  two  following  entries  that  appear  in  my  diary : 

Nov.  5.  I  showed  Secretary  paper  I  had  written  to  him,  stat 
ing  Navy  is  unprepared  and  needs  more  men,  more  training, 
and  a  general  staff.  He  made  almost  no  comment  on  my  paper, 
though  he  read  it  carefully.  During  conversation,  Sec.  referred 
to  time  in  early  April,  1913,  etc.,  etc. 

Nov.  10.  I  showed  Assistant  Sec.  a  copy  of  my  letter  to 
Sec.  on  unpreparedness  of  the  navy,  lack  of  training,  lack  of 
general  staff,  etc.  He  said,  it  was  bully  and  he  would  keep  it, 
etc. 

5.  Attention  is  invited  to  the  fact  that,  although  the  copy  of 
the  letter  sent  to  the  Senate  was  dated  Nov.  9,  while  the  entry 
in  my  diary  was  Nov.  5,  yet  nevertheless  my  diary  shows  that 
the  contents  of  the  letter  were  the  same  as  the  contents  of  the 
letter  of  Nov.  9.  My  recollection  is  that  I  kept  the  letter  on 
my  desk  a  few  days,  intending  to  take  up  the  matter  again  with 
the  Secretary,  but  finally  decided  not  to  do  so,  but  merely  to 
file  it ;  and  that  a  fresh  copy  was  made.  The  date  was  probably 
changed  by  inadvertence,  but  no  changes  were  made  in  the  let 
ter  beyond  possibly  some  verbal  alterations.  Certainly  no  change 
was  made  in  the  character  or  purport  of  the  letter. 

I  should  also  like  to  prove  by  my  diary  that  this  letter  was 
merely  the  concentrated  essence  of  a  great  many  oral  conversa 
tions  carried  on  frequently  after  the  war  began,  in  which  I  re 
peatedly  urged  on  the  Secretary  the  peril  of  the  country  and 
the  need  for  more  men,  a  General  Staff  and  more  progressive 
training. 

7.  In  case  you  do  not  deem  it  wise  to  grant  this  request,  I  then 
ask  you  as  a  matter  of  justice,  to  give  this  letter  as  much  pub 
licity  as  was  given  to  the  letter  of  the  Secretary. 

Very  respectfully, 

BRADLEY  A.  FISKB, 
Bear  Admiral,  U.  S.  Navy. 

I  was  much  surprised  that  the  Secretary  should  state 
that  "the  letter  of  August  1,  1914,  does  not  refer  to  the 
necessity  of  bringing  the  Navy  to  a  state  of  prepared 
ness."  It  was  my  intention  that  the  letter  should  urge 
it,  and  it  was  my  recollection  that  it  did.  A  reference 
to  the  entry  in  my  diary  under  date  of  Aug.  1,  1914,  con- 


UNPREPAREDNESS  LETTER  615 

firmed  me  in  this  recollection.  I  did  not  think  it  proper 
to  state  this  in  my  letter,  however,  as  it  might  be  inter 
preted  as  questioning  the  veracity  of  the  Secretary. 

May  3.  The  newspapers  say  that  Vice-President  Marshall 
gave  my  letter  to  Naval  Committee  to  decide  what  to  do  with  it, 
that  Lodge  defended  my  action  and  Tillman  said  I  was  "in 
a  mud  hole." 

May  4.  Newspapers  state  that  Senator  Tillman  read  my 
letter  in  the  Senate  and  then  declared  it  was  due  to  wounded 
vanity,  disappointed  ambition,  etc.,  and  Senator  Lodge  de 
fended  me.  N.  Y.  Sun  and  N.  Y.  World  have  strong  editorials 
saying  the  case  must  be  investigated:  World  is  particularly 
strong. 

May  8.  Received  characteristic  note  from  T.  R.  "I  am  very 
glad  to  get  your  piece  on  Naval  Strategy,  and  to  sit  at  the  feet 
of  Gamaliel." 

May  15.  The  newspapers  print  with  appropriate  headlines 
an  open  letter  written  by  the  American  Defense  Society  to 
the  President,  urging  him  to  investigate  the  "question  of  verac 
ity"  between  Sec.  Nav.  and  me! 

The  letter  of  the  society  was  as  follows : 

New  York,  May  12,  1916. 
The  President  of  the  United  States, 
White  House, 

"Washington,  D.  C. 
Dear  Mr.  President : — 

The  American  Defense  Society  desires  to  call  your  attention 
to  an  unfortunate  situation. 

As  the  result  of  a  request  from  the  United  States  Senate,  the 
Secretary  of  the  Navy  recently  made  public  a  letter  written  on 
November  9th,  19]  4,  by  Rear-Admiral  Bradley  A.  Fiske,  who 
was  then  Aide  for  Operations. 

The  Secretary  of  the  Navy  has  stated  that  his  Aide  for  Op 
erations  filed  this  letter  with  the  chief  clerk  of  the  Navy  De 
partment  and  did  not  show  it  to  the  Secretary.  Admiral  Fiske 
states  that  he  handed  the  letter  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy 
as  the  latter  was  standing  at  his  desk  in  the  Navy  Department, 
and  he  read  it  carefully. 

An  issue  of  veracity  has  thus  arisen  between  Rear-Admiral 


616     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

Bradley  A.  Fiske  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy.  Mr.  Presi 
dent,  we  respectfully  petition  you,  in  fairness  to  your  Secretary 
of  the  Navy,  and  fairness  to  a  gallant  naval  officer,  not  to 
allow  this  matter  to  remain  uninvestigated. 

Admiral  Fiske  graduated  from  the  Naval  Academy  in  1874; 
he  has  given  forty-two  years  of  service  to  his  country.  When 
he  served  as  navigating  officer  of  the  Petrel  at  the  battle  of 
Manila,  he  was  cited  by  his  captain  for  "eminent  and  conspicu 
ous  conduct  in  battle,"  and  by  Admiral  Dewey  for  "heroic 
conduct";  his  series  of  inventions  have  done  more  than  those 
of  any  other  man  to  place  the  United  States  Navy  in  a  pre 
eminent  position;  his  telescope  sight  has  been  adopted  by  every 
navy  in  the  world,  and  is  chiefly  responsible  for  the  improve 
ment  that  has  taken  place  in  the  naval  gunnery  since  1898. 

Admiral  Fiske  is  recognized  throughout  the  Service  as  the 
logical  successor  to  Admiral  Mahan;  his  writings  on  naval 
strategy  mark  him  as  the  leading  strategist  in  the  United  States 
Navy.  His  record,  therefore  is  one  of  gallantry  in  battle, 
coupled  with  faithful  attention  to  the  less  spectacular  duties  of  a 
naval  officer  in  time  of  peace.  Never  before  has  there  been  a 
blot  on  his  record;  today  he  stands  accused  by  your  Secretary 
of  the  Navy  of  negligence  and  untruthfulness,  for  if  he  filed 
his  letter  on  the  unpreparedness  of  the  Navy  with  the  Chief 
Clerk,  without  showing  it  to  the  Secretary,  he  was  culpably 
negligent  of  his  duty.  This,  he  says,  he  did  not  do.  We  earn 
estly  request  that,  without  delay,  you  will  order  an  investiga 
tion. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

(Signed)  C.  S.  THOMPSON, 
Chairman  Executive  Committee. 

May  16.  N.  Y.  Times  and  World  have  editorials,  insisting 
that  "question  of  veracity"  between  Sec.  Nav.  and  me  be  in 
vestigated.  ' ' 

May  24.  The  newspapers  publish  a  letter  from  President 
Wilson  to  the  American  Defense  Society  in  reply  to  their  letter 
of  May  14,  in  which  President  quotes  a  letter  from  Sec.  Nav. 
saying  he  accepted  my  statement  that  I  had  shown  my  Unpre 
paredness  letter  to  him  and  he  had  read  it ! 

The  letter  of  the  President  read  as  follows : 


617 

The  White  House, 
Washington,  May  22nd,  1916. 

My  Dear  Sir: 

I  am  in  receipt  of  your  letter  of  the  twelfth  of  May.  I  re 
ferred  it  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  and  he  has  furnished  me 
the  following  memorandum: 

"Some  days  ago,  in  response  to  a  resolution  of  the  Senate, 
I  transmitted  to  that  honorable  body  a  copy  of  a  communica 
tion  written  by  Rear  Admiral  Fiske  in  November,  1914.  In 
transmitting  the  letter  I  stated  that  I  had  not  seen  it  and  did 
not  know  that  it  had  been  filed  until  long  after  it  was  filed  with 
the  chief  clerk. 

"In  a  recent  letter  to  the  Senate  Rear  Admiral  Fiske  stated 
that  my  statement  showed  a  'lapse  of  memory,'  because  he  had 
presented  the  letter  to  me  and  I  had  read  it.  I  have  no  recol 
lection  that  this  paper  was  ever  presented  to  me  or  of  reading 
it. 

"Inasmuch,  however,  as  Admiral  Fiske  states  that  he  did 
show  it  to  me  before  it  was  filed  I  of  course  accept  his  state 
ment.  It  was  his  custom  while  aide  for  operations  to  present 
to  me  scores  of  papers  bearing  upon  all  naval  matters.  It  is 
utterly  impossible  for  any  Cabinet  Officer  in  the  multiplicity  of 
papers  presented  to  him  to  recall  all  of  them. 

"I  had  talked  with  Rear  Admiral  Fiske  several  times  about 
the  subject  matter  of  the  communication,  upon  which  I  had 
rather  fixed  views.  But  I  did  not,  when  my  letter  was  written 
to  the  Senate,  and  do  not  now,  recall  that  he  had  any  time 
committed  his  views  to  paper,  presented  them  to  me  or  placed 
them  on  file." 

Inasmuch  as  the  difference  referred  to  in  your  letter  between 
the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  and  Rear  Admiral  Fiske  is  merely 
one  of  recollection  of  an  incident  which  occurred  in  November, 
1914,  and  inasmuch  as  the  Secretary  says  that,  while  he  has  no 
recollection  of  having  read  the  communication  by  Rear  Admiral 
Fiske,  he  is  willing  to  accept  the  Admiral 's  statement,  the  matter 
does  not  seem  to  me  to  call  for  any  comment. 

Very  truly  yours, 

WOODROW  WILSON. 

May  25.  Letter  from  Dr.  Graeme  Hammond  says  no  need  for 
apprehension  about  Jo." 


618     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

During  the  preceding  two  years  my  wife 's  health  had 
caused  me  great  anxiety.  The  physicians  did  not  seem 
to  be  able  to  locate  the  cause  of  her  distress ;  but  finally 
they  declared  that  her  system  indicated  a  nervous 
malady. 

June  2nd.  Adm.  Benson  made  adulatory  speech  at  U.  S.  N.  A. 
dinner  Annapolis  last  night  about  Sec.  Nav.  and  telling  the  fine 
things  he  and  Sec.  had  been  doing  during  past  year.  Unpro 
fessional. 

June  11.  Sunday.  .  .  .  Leave  Newport  for  N.  Y.  tonight  and 
bid  farewell  to  my  naval  life. 

June  13.  Retired  today.  62  years  old.  Had  a  wonderful 
ovation  from  American  Defense  Society  in  big  room  of  Great 
Northern  Hotel,  hung  with  flags,  etc.,  during  which  I  was  pre 
sented  with  a  book  by  the  Society,  my  name  on  outside  in  gold 
letters,  etc.,  etc.,  letter  read  to  me,  etc.  I  made  a  speech  in 
answer,  and  then  several  photographers  and  "movie  men"  took 
pictures  of  us. 

The  letter  from  the  American  Defense  Society,  read  as 
follows : 

AMERICAN  DEFENSE  SOCIETY 

303  Fifth  Avenue 

New  York 

OFFICE  OF   THE  TRUSTEES. 

Dear  Admiral  Fiske: 

With  sincere  pleasure  we  hand  you  this  album  containing  ex 
tracts  from  the  leading  papers  of  the  country  which  should  be 
of  particular  interest  to  yourself. 

To  have  been  instrumental  in  having  justice  done  in  this 
public  way  to  a  gallant  and  distinguished  officer  of  the  United 
States  Navy  is  a  source  of  satisfaction  to  the  American  Defense 
Society. 

And  may  we  say  in  conclusion  that  your  dignified  and  courte 
ous  bearing  in  the  trying  circumstances  of  an  extremely  un 
pleasant  experience  has  won  universal  admiration,  and  has 
increased,  if  that  is  possible,  the  high  regard  and  esteem  in 
which  you  are  held  not  only  by  the  members  of  the  American 


UNPREPAEEDNESS  LETTER  619 

Defense  Society,  but  by  millions  of  your  fellow  countrymen. 
Very  respectfully  yours, 

(Signed)   J.  H.  COIT, 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Trustees. 
June  13,  1916. 


CHAPTEE  XLI 


JUNE  IS.  Sunday.  Spent  four  days  with  Poultney  Bigelow 
at  Maiden  on  Hudson: — very  good  time,  very  simple  life, 
etc. 

July  31.  Arrived  Jamestown,  R.  I.,  and  established  our 
selves  at  The  Thorndike. 

Aug.  17.  Mr.  Burton  J.  Hendrick  here  yesterday  and  to 
day  to  get  me  to  write  articles  for  World's  Work  of  which  he 
is  one  of  the  editors.  I  agreed  to  write  four  articles,  beginning 
January,  of  about  4,000  words  each,  etc. 

Aug.  18.  Went  on  board  Wyoming  and  talked  to  young  offi 
cers  as  well  as  to  C  in  C  and  Captain  about  horizometer.  Told 
them  about  preventing  enemy's  range  finding  by  my  old  scheme 
of  putting  strips  of  wood,  etc.,  on  our  masts,  etc.  At  Captain's 
(Wiley's)  suggestion,  I  called  attention  of  Department  to  it  in 
an  official  letter. 

This  scheme  of  preventing  range-finding  by  an  enemy 
was  a  scheme  that  I  had  devised  when  I  was  executive 
officer  of  the  battleship  Massachusetts  in  1902.  I  had 
told  possibly  half  a  dozen  officers  about  it  under  the 
pledge  of  secrecy,  because  I  thought  it  would  be  a  very 
valuable  thing  to  use  in  case  we  ever  got  into  war,  but  I 
wanted  the  idea  kept  secret.  The  scheme  was  simply  to 
break  up  the  smooth  lines  on  a  ship,  such  as  the  sides  of 
masts,  funnels,  etc.,  by  putting  irregular  strips  of  wood 
on  them,  or  pieces  of  canvas  that  would  flutter.  To  use 
the  ordinary  one-observer  range-finder,  a  smooth  vertical 
line  is  necessary;  and  I  found  by  some  experiments  which 
I  carried  on  on  board  the  Massachusetts  that  accurate 
range-finding  could  be  prevented  by  that  simple  means. 
One  day  I  sent  out  a  whale-boat  to  a  distance  of  about 
half  a  mile  from  the  ship,  with  her  two  masts  stepped. 

620 


WAR  CLOSE  AT  HAND  621 

One  mast  had  the  irregular  pieces  of  wood  nailed  on  it, 
and  the  other  was  in  its  ordinary  condition.  I  tried 
using  the  range-finder  myself,  and  I  found  I  could  meas 
ure  the  ranges  of  the  smooth  mast  very  accurately,  but 
of  the  other  one  only  inaccurately.  I  did  not  tell  any 
body  what  I  was  trying  to  do,  and  I  fancied  from  some 
of  the  fragments  of  comment  that  I  heard  that  some  peo 
ple  thought  I  had  gone  crazy. 

During  the  fourteen  years  that  had  intervened,  all  the 
navies  had  gone  ahead  using  range-finders,  and  I  had 
never  heard  an  intimation  from  anybody  that  any  one 
realized  how  easy  it  would  be  to  prevent  range-finding. 
The  few  officers  to  whom  I  had  confided  my  scheme  seemed 
very  much  surprised  at  what  I  told  them.  On  August 
18  Captain  Wiley  said  he  was  so  sure  that  we  were  go 
ing  to  get  into  war  that  he  urged  me  to  explain  my 
scheme  to  the  department  officially. 

So  I  wrote  a  letter  to  the  department,  and  I  got  Ad 
miral  Knight,  as  president  of  the  war  college,  to  put  a 
favorable  indorsement  on  it,  and  recommend  that  it  be 
tried  in  the  fleet.  The  Navy  Department  never  answered 
my  letter;  but  a  few  weeks  later,  Admiral  Knight  re 
ceived  a  letter,  signed  by  Admiral  Benson,  as  acting  secre 
tary,  saying  that  my  letter  had  been  received,  etc ! 

By  reason  of  the  great  attention  that  has  been  drawn 
to  camouflage,  I  have  recently  been  informed  that  there 
is  no  longer  any  reason  for  my  maintaining  secrecy  in 
regard  to  my  device  for  preventing  range-finding. 

Aug  20,  Sunday,  N.  Y.  Times  has  illustrated  interview  with 
me  in  first  page  Magazine  Section;  headed  "Politics  is  Foe  of 
Preparedness."  Rec'd  telegram  from  a  Mr.  -  -  asking  if  I 
would  consider  presidency  of  Shipbuilding  Co.,  etc. ! ! 

The  interview  in  the  Times  was  called  sharply  to  the 
attention  of  the  reader  by  a  hideous  picture  of  me. 
The  first  paragraph  read  as  follows : 

The  dangerous  enemy  of  the  United  States  is  not  Germany  or 
Japan ;  it  is  the  American  politician.  It  is  not  the  open  foe ;  it 


622     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

is  the  secret  poison  that  reduces  our  power  to  repel  the  foe. 
It  is  not  the  army  and  navy  of  any  foreign  power,  because  we 
can  raise  an  army  and  navy  better  than  theirs;  it  is  the  poli 
tician  who  prevents  our  getting  an  adequate  army  and  navy; 
who  persuades  the  people  that  such  an  army  and  navy  will 
cause  a  horrible  thing  that  the  politician  calls  "militarism." 
The  nation  can  gain  the  victory  over  a  foreign  foe,  but  is 
powerless  against  the  politician;  "the  soulless  politician,"  as 
Whittier  calls  him,  "who  gambles  for  office  with  dice  loaded 
with  human  hearts."  Few  men  die  by  reason  of  external  vio 
lence;  it  is  internal  disease  that  kills  them.  From  the  stand 
point  of  national  longevity,  politics  is  a  disease. 

Aug.  29.  ...  Mr.  appeared  yesterday  and  offered  me 

presidency  of  new  Company,  the  " shipbuilding  company," 

at  terms  which  are  very  tempting  to  a  poor  naval  officer.  After 
talking  it  over  with  Jo,  I  declined.  President  signed  Navy  Bill, 
including  the  General  Staff  provision! 

Thus  was  the  navy  finally  given  a  general  staff  against 
the  opposition  of  the  Navy  Department  and  half  of  the 
House  Naval  Committee.  I  feel  that  I  have  not  lived  in 
vain. 

Sept.  4.  Jo  has  been  taken  very  ill.  On  advice  of  Dr.  Buck 
ler,  I  am  taking  her  to  N.  Y.  this  evening.  Jo  was  not  really  ill 
till  Friday,  Sept.  1st. 

Sept.  9.  Saturday.  Dr.  Coe  and  nurse  &  I  took  Jo  to  Roose 
velt  Hospital  in  her  car.  She  stood  trip  quite  well. 

Sept.  10.  Sunday.  Jo  resting  fairly  well,  with  assistance 
of  Codeine  and  other  sedatives.  Carrie  is  in  Washington,  pack 
ing  up  our  household  goods  in  Stoneleigh  Court  for  shipment 
to  N.  Y.  Sent  Marie  (Jo's  maid)  to  Washington. 

Sept.  11.  Dr.  Coe  says  he  must  operate  tomorrow.  He  told 
Jo  this  p.  m.  &  she  took  news  tranquilly. 

Sept.  12.  Coe  operated  from  9  to  10  this  forenoon.  Jo 
stood  operation  well  &  was  back  in  her  room,  by  half  past  ten. 
I  saw  her  in  the  afternoon  from  4  to  4.30.  She  was  in  a  good 
deal  of  pain  &  moaned  &  groaned  a  great  deal. 

The  next  five  months  were  the  most  anxious  time  of 
my  life.  My  wife  rallied  well  from  the  operation,  but 
failed  to  gain  strength  afterward.  About  the  first  of 


WAR  CLOSE  AT  HAND  623 

October  she  began  to  get  weaker  and  during  the  latter 
part  of  October  she  was  virtually  unconscious  most  of 
the  time.  I  spent  an  hour  with  her  every  forenoon  and 
every  afternoon.  During  the  entire  month  of  November 
she  was  virtually  oblivious  of  her  surroundings  most  of 
the  time,  and  was  in  coma,  so  the  doctors  told  me,  a  great 
part  of  the  time.  In  the  early  part  of  November  no  one 
expected  her  to  live;  but  at  the  same  time  there  was  no 
instant  when  anybody  thought  that  she  was  going  to  die 
soon,  because  her  heart  kept  beating  with  a  full,  strong, 
and  regular  stroke.  Toward  the  latter  part  of  November 
hopes  began  to  be  entertained  of  her  recovery.  She 
progressed  uniformly,  but  with  extraordinary  slowness, 
all  during  the  month  of  December,  but  oblivious  of  her 
surroundings  and  unmindful  of  the  presence  of  any 
body. 

This  is  a  very  large  world,  and  many  things  are  hap 
pening  in  it.  People  who  are  ill,  and  the  friends  who 
are  tending  them,  are  on  the  sidewalk  of  life,  while  the 
great  procession  moves  down  the  avenue;  they  are  like 
the  wounded  in  the  hospitals,  while  the  battle  is  raging 
on  the  field  near  by. 

During  the  time  that  my  wife  was  lying  at  death's 
door,  the  procession  was  moving  by  that  door.  Part 
of  that  procession  I  saw,  as  some  of  the  entries  in  my 
diary  testify. 

Sept.  19.  ...  The  morning  papers  devote  great  attention  to 
the  British  Land  Dreadnought.  I  showed  Wagstaffe  last  night 
the  picture  in  the  Popular  Science  Monthly  of  last  (I  think) 
October,  illustrating  an  extract  from  my  essay  "Naval  Power" 
published  in  Naval  Institute  in  1911. 

Oct.  9.  German  submarine  U-53  that  came  into  Newport  on 
Saturday,  torpedoed  from  "6  to  9"  vessels  yesterday  near  Nan- 
tucket  ! 

Oct.  14.  My  book  is  out  today,  &  is  conspicuously  advertised 
in  the  N.  Y.  Times,  Sun  &  Tribune. 

Oct.  15.  Sunday.  N.  Y.  Times,  Sun  &  N.  Y.  American  pub 
lish  in  full  my  interview  with  Wagstaffe  on  "What  the  Visit 


624     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

of  the  U-53  Portends. ' '  I  believe  it  is  published  also  in  various 
other  papers  in  various  cities. 

Oct.  17.  Morning  mail  informs  me  that  at  the  Annual  Meet 
ing  of  the  U.  S.  Naval  Institute,  held  at  the  Naval  Academy  on 
Oct.  13,  I  was  again  elected  President.  This  is  the  sixth  time; 
and  it  beats  the  record,  except  that  Admiral  Luce  was  elected 
eleven  times.  It  has  not  been  the  custom  to  elect  a  man  as 
President  who  is  on  the  retired  list.  In  fact,  Luce,  who  ceased 
to  be  President  in  1898,  was  the  last  retired  officer  to  be  elected 
President. ' ' 

Oct.  20.  ...  I  received  a  letter  from  Theodore  Roosevelt 
to  whom  I  had  sent  my  book,  in  which  was  the  following  para 
graph  : 

"There  is  no  one  man  to  whom  the  United  States  Navy  owes 
as  much,  during  the  last  three  and  a  half  years  as  to  you.  You 
have  shown  the  very  rarest  type  of  courage  in  standing  up  for 
it." 

The  reviews  of  my  book  were  extremely  good.  The 
book  attracted  much  more  attention  than  I  expected,  and 
the  Conference  Committee  on  Preparedness  sent  a  copy 
to  each  senator  and  each  member  of  the  House  of  Rep 
resentatives,  personally. 

The  book  was  called  "The  Navy  as  a  Fighting  Ma 
chine,"  and  was  written  to  show  that  a  navy  must  be 
designed  as  a  whole,  like  any  other  machine ;  that  it  must 
be  prepared  and  operated  according  to  the  principles  that 
govern  fighting  (strategy) ;  that  it  is  merely  a  develop 
ment  of  more  primitive  weapons ;  and  that  it  will  be  found 
ineffective,  when  used  against  a  navy  like  the  German 
navy,  unless  it  has  been  prepared  and  designed  with 
skill,  and  unless  it  is  operated  in  war  with  skill.  It 
proved  also  that  a  navy  is  like  any  other  machine  in  that 
it  cannot  be  designed,  prepared,  and  operated  with  skill 
unless  the  man  at  the  head  understands  it  thoroughly.  It 
showed  how  the  personality  of  the  chief  of  every  organ 
ization  pervades  the  entire  organization,  and  character 
izes  its  activities. 

Oct.   30.  .  .  .  Committee   from   Lotus    Club   brought   me   in- 


WAR  CLOSE  AT  HAND  625 

vitation  to  be  chief  guest  at  a  Club  dinner.  I  declined  on  ac 
count  of  Jo's  health. 

Nov.  6.  Mr.  E.  P.  Button  took  me  for  a  drive  of  an  hour 
in  a  small  buggy  behind  a  fast  horse  that  he  drove  himself.  He 
is  86  years  old  and  two  months  and  has  been  a  half  invalid 
all  his  life !  This  shows  how  well  the  human  machine  will  last 
if  good  care  is  taken  of  it. 

Nov.  7.  ...  Election  Day. 

Army  and  navy  officers  seldom  vote.  This  is  not  be 
cause  they  are  not  allowed  to  do  so,  but  because  they  are 
continuing  officers  of  the  Government,  and  do  not  think 
it  right  to  belong  to  either  political  party.  At  the  same 
time  I  think  that  nine  tenths  of  them,  except  those  who 
come  from  the  South,  prefer  to  have  the  Republican  party 
in  power ;  because  of  the  two,  the  Republican  party  seems 
to  take  the  broader  international  outlook,  and  to  be  less 
partizan  and  provincial.  Army  and  navy  officers  de 
plore  the  influence  of  politics  in  national  and  international 
affairs,  especially  in  regard  to  the  army  and  navy;  but 
we  think  that  the  Republican  party  is  the  more  patriotic 
of  the  two,  and  we  know  that  it  is  more  favorably  in 
clined  toward  an  adequate  army  and  navy. 

Some  time  in  the  latter  part  of  1916  Admiral  Dewey 
said  to  me  substantially  as  follows : 

"The  situation  in  the  country  now  is  in  one  way  almost 
exactly  like  what  it  was  before  the  Civil  War.  This  is 
one  reason,  although  it  isn't  a  very  good  one,  why  I 
feel  sure  that  we  are  going  to  get  into  this  war;  you 
know  when  similar  conditions  prevail,  similar  results  are 
apt  to  follow.  Now,  just  before  we  got  into  the  Civil 
War,  things  were  as  they  are  now;  the  South  was  in 
charge  of  the  administration  and  the  important  com 
mittees  in  Congress,  and  was  running  the  Government 
for  the  benefit  of  the  South,  with  the  North  paying  the 
bills." 

Nov.  30.  ...  Thanksgiving.  Benson  made  awful  testimony 
before  House  N.  Committee  against  aeronautics ! ! !  Practically 
busted  all  I  had  done. 


626     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

Dec.  11.  In  England,  Lloyd  George  has  formed  a  "War 
Council"  of  five  Cabinet  officers  of  which  he  is  head.  All  are 
civilians  and  are  going  to  manage  all  the  war  business.  I  '11 
bet  a  dollar  that  they  '11  direct  the  actual  military  and  naval 
operations  and  do  a  world  of  harm.  Unless  they  go  contrary  to 
the  way  men  have  gone  in  the  past,  they  '11  not  realize  the 
necessities  and  factors  of  military  affairs,  and  will  interfere. 
The  resulting  danger  to  England  looks  very  great  to  me. 
Dec.  12.  ...  Lunched  with  the  office  staff  of  "Life." 
Dec.  18.  ...  Adm.  Benson  testified  before  Committee  that 
"in  the  navy  we  only  need  aviation  for  two  purposes" — scout 
ing  from  the  fleet  and  spotting  the  fall  of  shot  in  battle.  B-r-r-r, 
B-r-r-r.  And  this  from  a  commissioned  officer  in  the  navy  of 
the  country  of  Langley  and  the  Wright  brothers,  in  November, 
1916 ! ! ! 

The  following  is  a  quotation  from  Page  575  of  the 
Record  of  Admiral  Benson's  testimony  before  the  Com 
mittee  of  Naval  Affairs,  House  of  Representatives, 
November  29,  1916: 

The  question  of  aviation  is  a  very  mixed  one,  I  think,  in 
most  everybody's  mind,  because  in  the  Navy  we  only  need  avia 
tion  for  two  purposes:  First,  for  scouting,  to  get  information 
from  the  enemy,  when  we  want  to  act  in  conjunction  with  the 
fleet;  and  the  other  is  to  spot  the  fall  of  the  shot  in  a  battle. 
Now,  it  is  the  easiest  thing  in  the  world — we  might  get  a  thou 
sand  or  more  than  a  thousand  aircraft,  if  we  just  wanted  them 
to  light  on  the  land  and  fly  over  the  land,  but  we,  in  the  Navy, 
only  want  them  for  two  purposes,  and  we  want  to  concentrate 
all  our  energies  and  everything  along  those  lines,  to  keep  on 
until  we  have  found  what  we  want,  and  we  have  been  experi 
menting  with  a  catapult — an  arrangement  that  fires  the  aircraft 
off  the  deck  of  the  ship,  because  if  you  do  not — if  you  are  on  the 
water,  it  is  almost  impossible  for  aircraft  to  get  off  the  water, 
if  there  is  any  sea  on;  if  it  is  at  all  rough  you  can  not  do  it, 
because  the  machine  dives  head  into  the  sea  that  is  swirling  over 
it,  and  it  is  destroyed ;  but  if  it  can  be  fired  from  the  deck  of  a 
ship,  and  go  out  into  the  air,  as  we  are  doing  now  from  the 
North  Carolina,  and  we  hope  in  a  few  days  from  the  Washing 
ton,  and  later  from  the  West  Virginia — if  he  can  go  out  and 


WAR  CLOSE  AT  HAND  627 

fly  at  the  rate  of  a  hundred  miles  per  hour  for  possibly  five 
hours,  he  can  come  back,  or  send  information  back  by  radio  to 
the  ships  in  regard  to  the  enemy.  This  is  the  primary  use  for 
which  the  navy  wants  aircraft;  and  the  next  thing  is  in  battle 
for  spotting  the  fall  of  the  shot. 

How  can  we  "highly  resolve  that  these  dead  shall  not 
have  died  in  vain ' '  when  such  testimony  is  officially  given 
by  the  chief  of  naval  operations  to  Congress ! 

That  this  testimony  showed  a  knowledge  far  from 
up  to  date,  is  indicated  by  the  following  list  of  achieve 
ments  by  aircraft  that  is  taken  from  a  book  on  naval 
aeronautics  by  Henry  Woodhouse  that  appeared  about 
six  months  after  Benson's  testimony,  that  is,  in  June, 
1917: 

1.  Attacked  ships  and  submarines   at  sea  with  bombs,  tor 
pedoes,  and  guns.     (Seaplanes  and  dirigibles  used.) 

2.  Bombed   the    enemy's   bases    and   stations.     (Land    aero 
planes,  seaplanes  and  dirigibles  used.) 

3.  Attacked   the   enemy's  aircraft   in   the  air.     (Aeroplanes 
and  seaplanes  used.) 

4.  Served  as  the  eyes  and  scouts  of  fleets  at  sea.     (Dirigibles, 
seaplanes  and  kite  balloons  used.) 

5.  Protected  ships  at  sea  and  in  ports  against  attacks  from 
hostile  submarines  and  battleships.     (Seaplanes  and  dirigibles 
used.) 

6.  Defended   and   protected   naval   bases   and   stations   from 
naval   and    aerial   attacks.     (Land   aeroplanes,    seaplanes    and 
dirigibles  used.) 

7.  Convoyed  troop  ships  and  merchants  ships  on  coastwise 
trips.     (Dirigibles  and  seaplanes  used.) 

8.  Patrolled  the  coasts,  holding  up  and  inspecting  doubtful 
ships,  and  convoying  them  to  examining  stations  and  searching 
coasts  for  submarine  bases.     (Dirigibles  used.) 

9.  Prevented  hostile  aircraft  from  locating  the  position  and 
finding  the  composition  and  disposition  of  the  fleet,  getting  the 
range  of  ships,  naval  bases,  stations,  magazines,   etc.     (Land 
aeroplanes  and  seaplanes  used.) 

10.  Located,  and  assisted  trawlers,  destroyers,  and  gunners 


628     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

in  capturing  or  destroying  hostile  submarines.     (Seaplanes,  di 
rigibles  and  kite  balloons  used.) 

11.  Cooperated  with  submarines,  guiding  them  in  attacks  on 
ships.     (Dirigibles  and  seaplanes  used.) 

12.  Located  mine  fields  and  assisted  trawlers  in  destroying 
mines.     (Dirigibles,  seaplanes  and  kite  balloons  used.) 

13.  Served  as  the  "eyes  in  planting  mines,"  minimizing  the 
time  required  for  mine  planting.     (Dirigibles,  seaplanes  and 
kite  balloons  used.) 

14.  Served  as  "spotters'  in  locating  the  position  of  the  hostile 
ships  and  directing  gun-fire.     (Dirigibles,  seaplanes  and  kite 
balloons  used.) 

15.  Served  as  carriers  of  important  messages  between  ships 
which  could  not  be  entrusted  to  wireless  owing  to  the  possibility 
of  the  enemy  wireless  picking  up  the  messages,  such  as  com 
municating  to  incoming  ships  information  regarding  the  loca 
tion  of  mines,  submarines,  and  courses,  to  avoid  mistakes  and 
confusion.     (Seaplanes  and  dirigibles  used.) 

16.  Carried  out  operations  over  land  and  sea  intended  to  divert 
the  attention  of  and  mislead  the  enemy  while  strategical  opera 
tions  were  being  carried  out  by  the  fleet  or  squadrons.     (Land 
aeroplanes,  seaplanes  and  dirigibles  used.) 

17.  Have  made  it  possible  for  commanders  to  get  films  of 
theatre  of  operations,  photographs  of  the  location,  composition 
and  disposition  of  hostile  naval  forces,  and  photographic  records 
of  condition  and  of  the  movements  and  operations  of  their  own, 
as  well  as  of  the  hostile  naval  forces. 

These  seventeen  different  kinds  of  employment  of 
naval  aircraft  had  been  carried  on  on  both  sides  in  the 
North  Sea  during  the  war,  and  were  perfectly  well  known. 
As  far  back  as  December  24,  1914,  the  English  had  sent 
an  expeditionary  force  of  seaplane  carriers  which  had 
lowered  bombing  seaplanes  into  the  water,  and  those  sea 
planes  had  bombed  Cuxhaven,  Germany's  naval  base. 
On  February  12,  1915,  thirty-four  British  airplanes  and 
seaplanes,  under  the  command  of  Wing-Commander  Sam 
son,  raided  Bruges,  Zeebrugge,  Blankenberghe,  and  Os- 
tend.  The  fact  also  that  the  British  had  sunk  Turkish 


WAR  CLOSE  AT  HAND  629 

vessels  by  torpedo-planes  in  1915  and  1916  was  also  well 
known. 

My  first  article  in  The  World's  Work,  which  appeared 
in  January,  1917,  was  directed  to  showing  the  impossi 
bility  of  expanding  a  navy  suddenly  in  the  excitement  of 
imminent  war,  and  maintaining  its  efficiency  during  the 
operation.  The  first  paragraph  read  as  follows: 

"A  man  rushed  violently  on  to  the  platform  of  a  rail 
road  station,  but  just  missed  the  train. 

11  'You  didn't  run  fast  enough,'  said  a  by-stander. 

11  'Oh,  yes,  I  did,'  was  the  reply;  'but  I  didn't  start 
soon  enough.'  " 

During  the  months  that  had  gone  by  I  had  become  in 
creasingly  alarmed  at  the  inaction  of  the  United  States. 
I  saw  the  enemy  getting  closer  and  closer,  and  no  sign 
of  preparation  on  our  part.  Believing,  as  I  did,  that 
the  odds  were  in  favor  of  Germany,  because  history 
showed  that  wars  had  nearly  always  been  won  by  supe 
rior  strategy  and  not  by  superior  numbers  or  material 
I  was  amazed  at  the  complacency  of  the  American  public. 
I  realized  that,  by  such  articles  as  I  published  in  The 
World's  Work,  and  especially  the  one  just  printed,  I  was 
making  myself  obnoxious  to  many  influential  people,  and 
exposing  myself  to  being  regarded  as  a  militarist,  and 
also  to  other  dangers.  But  I  was  so  thoroughly  alarmed 
that  I  had  to  cry  out  regardless  of  consequences.  For 
tunately,  the  press  of  the  country  seemed  to  support  me. 
I  realized  that  I  could  go  no  further  than  a  position  in 
which  the  press  would  support  me,  and  for  this  reason 
I  watched  the  comments  of  the  press  carefully,  and  noted 
them  in  my  diary.  I  knew  that  if  I  went  too  far,  what 
ever  influence  my  experience  and  age  might  give  me 
would  be  entirely  lost,  and  that  all  that  I  had  been  able 
to  do  would  be  undone. 

Jan.  6.  ...  Attended  luncheon  of  the  Republican  Club  and 
discussion  about  preparedness.  After  the  regular  speeches  had 


630     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

ceased,  I  was  called  on.  I  spoke  perhaps  three  minutes.  N.  Y. 
Times,  Sun,  Tribune  and  World  head  a  column  on  a  page 
(respectively)  "Prepare  or  Perish  says  Admiral  Fiske,"  "Pre 
pare  or  Perish  is  Fiske 's  Warning,"  "Fiske  warns  of  Peril, 
Prepare  or  Perish  his  Slogan,"  and  "Nation  Warned  to  Pre 
pare  or  Perish  by  Admiral  Fiske. "  N.  Y.  Herald  simply  gives  a 
paragraph  to  it,  saying,  "Rear  Admiral  Bradley  A.  Fiske  said, 
"We  must  prepare  or  Perish." 

The  space  and  display  given  my  brief  remarks  seemed 
to  me  extraordinary,  and  to  show  that  New  York  was 
awaking  to  facts. 

Jan.  18.  ...  Boston  Transcript  published  my  editorial  on 
Dewey  with  only  two  very  minor  changes.  I  tried  the  effect  of 
music  on  Jo,  playing  several  selections  on  the  victrola.  It  af 
fected  her  pleasantly  but  not  very  greatly.  Nat.  Institute  Effi 
ciency  made  me  Chairman  Committee  to  get  5  lecturers  for 
Chatauqua — I  to  be  one ! 

Jan.  23.  Life  has  a  splendid  and  exceptional  kind  of  a 
review  of  my  book,  not  placed  under  the  heading  of  book  reviews, 
but  as  part  of  the  news. 

Jan.  25.  Spoke  in  Newark  last  night.  Had  splendid  recep 
tion.  Got  along  bully.  After  my  regular  speech,  I  was  asked 
to  continue  and  make  an  informal  talk  about  my  own  experi 
ences  in  the  Navy.  I  did  so. 

Jan.  26.  Spoke  last  night  in  D.  A.  R.  Convention  Hall  in 
Wash,  for  Nat.  Sec.  League.  Prof.  Thayer,  then  ex-Sec.  War 
Stimson,  then  I,  then  ex-Sec.  Navy  Meyer  spoke.  My  interjected 
remark  that  America  was  not  "Uncle  Sam,  but  Aunt  Elizabeth" 
took  best  of  all  I  said.  The  big  papers  this  morning  devote 
nearly  all  their  space  to  Elihu  Root 's  speech,  made  before  League 
in  afternoon.  This  is  right;  his  was  far  the  best,  and  carried 
the  most  weight. 

In  preparing  my  speech,  I  had  written  the  following 
paragraph:  "America  is  like  a  woman  in  the  family  of 
nations,  because  she  depends  for  her  safety  on  the  ab 
sence  of  physical  danger,  or  on  the  strong  right  arm  of 
others.  Uncle  Sam  is  no  name  at  all  for  us — it  should 
be  Aunt  Elizabeth."  I  decided,  however,  not  to  speak 


WAR  CLOSE  AT  HAND  631 

this,  thinking  it  might  sound  undignified,  and  unworthy 
of  so  serious  an  occasion ;  but  when  I  got  to  speaking,  out 
it  came;  and  the  audience  liked  it  better  than  anything 
else  I  said. 

My  article  in  The  World's  Work  for  February  was 
written  to  persuade  the  people  not  to  fight  Germany  along 
the  old  lines ;  because  I  felt  sure  that  Germany  had  pre 
pared  with  German  thoroughness  to  meet  her  enemies 
on  just  those  lines ;  so  that  a  new  line  of  attack  was  obvi 
ously  essential  to  success.  The  article  was  called,  "The 
War's  Most  Important  Hint  to  Us. "  The  last  two  para 
graphs  were  as  follows : 

We  Must  Produce  a  Great  Invention 

The  overwhelming  advantage  that  can  be  secured  by  the 
sudden  and  unexpected  interjection  into  a  war  of  some  new 
mechanism,  and  its  use  in  actual  battle  before  the  enemy  can 
learn  how  to  oppose  it,  first  assumed  distinct  importance  in  the 
events  of  our  Civil  War.  It  has  assumed  still  greater  impor 
tance  in  the  present  war,  because  of  the  greater  importance  that 
the  scientific  arts  have  now  acquired.  Inasmuch  as  the  United 
States  is  the  most  inventive  nation  on  the  earth,  and  inasmuch 
as  we  may  be  threatened  with  a  danger  on  the  sea  that  we  shall 
need  all  our  resources  to  avert,  the  conclusion  seems  logical 
that  we  ought  to  try  to  supplement  our  present  naval  strength 
by  some  new  invention  or  device  that  will  do  for  us  now  what 
the  Monitor  did. 

Prominently  displayed  in  the  article  was  an  illustra 
tion  of  a  torpedo-plane  sinking  a  ship. 

Feb.  7.  ...  Banquet  Natl.  Assn.  of  Manufacturers  of 
Medicinal  Products.  Gen.  Wood  and  I  made  patriotic  speeches. 
A  man  near  me,  while  I  was  making  final  appeal,  interjected  oc 
casionally  the  words, ' '  damn  rot,  damn  rot. ' ' 


CHAPTER  XLII 

THE   UNITED   STATES   DECLARES    WAR   AGAINST   GERMANY 

ON  February  12,  1917,  I  gave  a  lecture  for  the  Aero 
Club  of  America  in  the  Grand  Central  Palace 
on  the  occasion  of  the  Pan-American  Aeronautical  Ex 
position  there.  It  described  my  torpedoplane  and  the 
uses  for  which  it  was  intended. 

About  this  time  I  saw  occasional  suggestions  in  the 
press  and  magazines  that  I  ought  to  be  Secretary  of  the 
Navy.  I  can  think  of  few  positions  more  distasteful  to 
me.  If  the  country  wanted  the  navy  to  be  a  navy  simply, 
and  not  a  political  asset  for  successive  administrations, 
the  position  of  head  of  the  navy  would  be  attractive, 
because  it  would  give  an  opportunity  of  doing  beneficial 
and  constructive  work.  If  a  navy  is  a  political  asset,  a 
politician  should  be  at  the  head  of  it. 

On  Feb.  19  The  Independent  published  an  article  writ 
ten  by  me  called,  "The  Navy  Needs  Strategy,"  which 
pointed  out  that  the  greatest  single  cause  of  Germany's 
military  efficiency  is  that  in  Germany  the  most  important 
subject  of  thought  and  endeavor  is  strategy,  while  the 
word  is  seldom  even  heard  in  the  United  States,  with  the 
result  that  all  our  efforts  at  building  and  operating  a 
navy  and  an  army  are  not  properly  or  systematically  di 
rected.  We  are  like  a  man  who  is  strong,  but  clumsy,  and 
not  able  to  contend  against  a  trained  pugilist. 

Mar.  18.  Sunday.  .  .  .  I  gave  Aero  Club  a  memorandum 
saying  battleplanes  best  defense  now. 

At  this  time,  I  was  sure  that  we  would  be  at  war 
with  Germany  in  a  very  short  time.  As  we  were  not  yet 
at  war,  I  could  not  intimate  that  the  aeroplanes  were  to 

632 


LETTER  UBGING  USE  OF  BATTLE  PLANES  633 

be  used  against  Germany,  and  so  I  spoke  of  them  gener 
ally  in  connection  with  national  defense. 

Some  of  the  paragraphs  of  my  memorandum  read  as 
follows : 

My  life  in  the  navy  brought  me  into  intimate  contact  with 
all  the  advances  in  naval  construction,  from  the  little  Saratoga 
in  which  I  made  my  first  cruise  as  cadet  midshipman,  to  the 
superdreadnought  Florida,  which  was  my  last  flagship.  The 
military  value  of  concentration  was,  of  course,  impressed  un 
ceasingly  upon  me ;  and  with  it  a  realization  of  the  fact  that  the 
main  aim  of  strategy  and  tactics  is  to  bring  a  preponderating 
force  to  bear  on  a  given  point  before  the  enemy  can  prevent  it. 
To  do  this  we  need  concentration  of  power  in  as  few  units  as 
possible  and  ability  to  move  these  units  as  rapidly  as  possible. 

POWER  AND  MOBILITY  ARE  THE  PRIME  AGENCIES  OF  THE  MILITARY 
ART. 

Now,  at  the  present  time  the  unit  in  all  armies  is  the  soldier 
and  his  musket.  We  seem  tied  down  to  that  slow  and  feeble 
little  unit.  But,  are  we  really?  The  navy  seemed  tied  down  to 
the  little  sailing  frigate;  so  much  so  that,  even  after  the  Moni 
tor's  achievements  in  our  civil  war,  we  returned  to  the  sailing 
frigate.  The  competition  of  nations,  however,  forced  us  to  take 
up  larger  units;  and  now  we  have  the  Pennsylvania. 

Is  there  no  way  in  which  this  great  inventive  and  constructive 
nation  can  get  some  more  powerful  and  mobile  unit  than  the 
soldier  and  his  rifle?  Can  we  not  get  more  defensive  useful 
ness  out  of  the  intelligent  collegian,  technician  and  chauffeur 
than  by  marching  him  in  a  regiment  with  a  little  musket  in  his 
hands?  Is  there  no  device  by  means  of  which  large  units  of 
power  can  be  carried,  which  is  not  subject  to  the  limitations  of 
speed  and  size  that  restrict  a  land  battle  ship  to  small  dimensions  ? 

Yes,  and  that  device  is  now  being  used  in  Europe  after  having 
been  designed  and  manufactured  in  the  United  States.  It  is 
called  the  battleplane.  Such  a  device  recently  carried  twenty- 
seven  passengers;  and  another,  an  air  cruiser,  carried  3,500 
pounds  of  crew  and  equipment.  Some  of  the  largest  battle 
planes  are  being  constructed  in  the  United  States;  and  one  of 
the  aeroplane  manufacturers  states  that  he  can  easily  build  a 
battleplane  capable  of  carrying  and  launching  a  full  size  torpedo 
weighing  2,500  pounds. 


634     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

The  size  and  power  of  the  aeroplane  has  already  gone  far 
beyond  the  limits  set  for  its  possible  development  by  certain 
engineers  only  three  years  ago.  The  practical  difficulties  of 
making  it  larger  still  are  quite  apparent;  yet,  nevertheless,  no 
theoretical  limits  to  its  size  and  power  have  yet  been  accepted 
by  aeronauts.  That  the  aeroplane  is  now  the  best  single  weapon 
against  the  submarine  is  conceded.  That  the  aeroplane,  and 
especially  the  battleplane,  will  rapidly  advance  in  size  and 
power  within  the  coming  year  and  afterward,  is  the  mature  be 
lief  of  many  aeronauts.  Should  we  not  therefore  immediately 
investigate  its  capabilities  not  only  as  a  scout  and  accessory,  but 
as  a  major  instrument  of  warfare? 

I  do  not  suggest  the  abolition  of  the  soldier  and  his  musket, 
but  neither  do  I  suggest  the  abolition  of  the  boat  pulled  by  the 
oars  of  rowers.  I  merely  suggest  that,  as  the  boat  pulled  by 
rowers  was  superseded  for  large  operations  by  the  sailing  ship, 
and  as  the  sailing  ship  was  superseded  by  the  more  mobile 
steamer  with  broadside  guns,  and  as  this  type  of  warship  was 
superseded  by  the  turret  ship,  and  as  the  turret  ship  has  been 
expanded  into  the  superdreadnought,  so  the  soldier  and  his  mus 
ket  may  be  superseded,  for  important  operations,  by  the  im 
measurably  more  powerful  and  mobile  battleplane. 

If  so,  the  more  quickly  we  act  the  better.  "Hindenburg 
never  sleeps." 

Mar.  19.  ...  N.  Y.  Herald  publishes  my  battleplane  memo 
randum  in  full;  Tribune,  Sun  and  American  publish  about  % 
of  it ;  also  Eve.  Telegram  and  Eve.  Sun. 

Mar.  20.  ...  I  received  letter  from  Sec.  Nav.  forbidding  me 
to  make  any  address  without  his  permission. 

Sometime  before  this  I  had  been  elected  a  trustee  of 
The  American  Defense  Society.  I  accepted  the  position 
with  great  alacrity,  because  I  had  become  much  impressed 
with  the  purity  of  aim  of  the  society,  and  the  excellent 
work  it  was  doing  in  arousing  the  patriotic  spirit  of  the 
country.  The  trustees  were  to  have  a  luncheon  on  March 
20,  and  I  was  asked  to  prepare  an  address  to  the  trustees, 
setting  forth  my  views  as  to  the  possibility  of  our  im 
proving  the  national  defense  by  building  up  naval  and 
military  aeronautics.  I  had  prepared  a  brief  memo- 


FORBIDDEN  TO  MAKE  ANY  ADDEESS     635 

randum,  and  was  about  to  start  downtown  to  attend  the 
luncheon  when  I  received  the  Secretary's  letter.  So 
when  I  was  called  upon  to  speak  at  the  luncheon,  I  told 
the  trustees  of  the  prohibition.  The  trustees  were  in 
dignant,  and  gave  out  to  the  press  an  announcement 
which  was  published  in  most  of  the  papers  the  following 
morning. 

Mar.  21.  N.  Y.  Eve.  Sun  has  editorial,  headed  "War  on  Ad 
miral  Fiske. "  .  .  .  Mr.  Herbert  L.  Satterlee  persuaded  me  to 
prepare  speech  for  Navy  League  meeting  in  eve.  of  Mar.  27  and 
ask  Sec.  to  approve  it.  I  consented  and  mailed  proposed  ad 
dress  to  Dept.  Meeting  in  Chamber  of  Commerce  abandoned, 
due  to  my  not  being  able  to  speak  because  of  gag.  Letter  from 
Cronan  says  Sypher  told  him  in  Manila  that  he  took  my  letter 
Nov.  9,  1914,  from  files  by  X's  orders  and  gave  it  to  X.  So  X 
is  the  man! 

Mar.  25.  ...  I  am  making  a  Torpedoplane  and  asking  to  be 
permitted  to  continue  at  this  work,  etc.  .  .  .  The  Conference 
Preparedness  Committee  has  ordered  one  of  my  books,  "The 
Navy  as  a  Fighting  Machine,"  to  be  sent  to  each  Senator  and 
each  Representative,  with  a  personal  inscription  on  the  fly  leaf 
of  each  book !  I  give  up  my  30  cents  royalty  on  each  book,  and 
the  publishers  give  up  a  similar  profit.  Sec.  Guy  of  N.  Y.  Elect. 
Society  went  to  Wash,  to  persuade  Sec.  to  let  me  speak  before 
N.  Y.  Electrical  Society. 

Mar.  26.  Telegram  from  W.  H.  Stayton  of  Navy  League  in 
Washington  says  "Department  has  just  notified  me  that  your 
speech  was  approved  and  mailed  to  you  this  morning. 

I  had  written  my  speech  quite  hastily,  at  Mr.  Satterlee 's 
request,  and  I  did  not  really  believe  that  the  Secretary 
would  permit  me  to  deliver  it,  though  it  seemed  to  me  to 
contain  nothing  which  was  at  all  heterodox  or  which 
would  give  any  offense  to  any  one.  I  knew  that  a  declara 
tion  of  war  would  come  in  a  few  days,  and  I  also  knew 
that  the  people  of  the  country  misapprehended  the  situa 
tion  entirely.  The  utterances  of  even  our  greatest  men, 
the  editorials  in  even  the  best  newspapers,  the  remarks 
that  were  made  in  private  conversation,  and  the  conversa- 


636     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

tions  I  heard  on  the  streets  and  in  public  places,  all 
showed  me  that  the  American  people  felt  no  doubt  of 
the  success  of  the  Allies.  I  felt  sure  that  many  of  them, 
even  some  who  were  supposed  to  be  "  statesmen, "  be 
lieved  not  only  that  victory  was  to  perch  on  the  banners 
of  the  Allies,  but  also  that  it  was  going  to  perch  there 
soon. 

I  was  so  fully  convinced  that  the  Allies  were  going  to 
lose  that  it  took  me  some  time  to  realize  how  thoroughly 
the  great  body  of  the  public  held  the  contrary  belief.  In 
my  private  conversations  with  intimate  friends  I  told 
them  what  I  believed,  under  the  pledge  of  secrecy,  and  I 
was  called  a  pro-German  as  my  reward.  But  I  could  not 
possibly  see  how  the  Allies  had  any  reasonable  chance  in 
view  of  the  proved  disgraceful  incompetence  of  Russia, 
which  had  been  whipped  by  little  Japan  only  eleven  years 
before,  and  of  the  pacifist-ridden  condition  of  Great 
Britain  and  Prance.  The  only  two  factors  that  seemed 
worth  counting  on  were  the  magnificent  navy  of  Great 
Britain,  which  could  not  get  at  the  German  Navy  and 
the  magnificent  army  of  France,  which,  magnificent  as  it 
was,  was  not  so  good  as  the  army  of  Germany.  And  I 
knew  that  even  the  magnificent  navy  of  Great  Britain 
and  the  magnificent  army  of  France  were  not  directed,  in 
the  most  important  matters,  by  naval  and  military 
strategists,  but  by  politicians. 

The  day  after  receiving  Stay  ton's  telegram,  I  showed 
a  copy  of  what  I  had  prepared  to  Mr.  Satterlee  and 
Colonel  Robert  M.  Thompson,  president  of  the  Navy 
League.  I  told  them  that  I  much  preferred  not  to  make 
the  speech,  because  my  wife  was  very  ill  at  home  that 
day,  and  I  did  not  want  to  leave  her.  They  seemed  a 
little  doubtful,  and  asked  to  see  what  I  had  prepared. 
When  I  handed  it  to  them,  I  said  I  did  not  want  to  make 
the  speech,  in  any  event,  if  it  was  like  the  other  speeches 
that  were  to  be  made.  They  both  assured  me  in  the  most 
emphatic  way  that  nobody  had  prepared  anything  like 
mine ;  and  one  of  them  said  in  a  voice  that  trembled : 


SPEECH  BEFORE  NAVY  LEAGUE    637 

"But,  my  God!  Admiral,  you  don't  believe  that  Ger 
many  has  a  better  chance  than  the  Allies,  do  you?" 

"Yes,"  I  said,  "but  perhaps  I  had  better  not  say  so. 
I  think  I  had  better  not  make  the  speech  at  all. ' ' 

These  gentlemen  and  some  others  who  were  present, 
however,  assured  me  that  what  they  wanted  to  know,  and 
what  they  wanted  me  to  tell  the  audience,  was  exactly 
what  I  thought;  that  I  knew  more  about  it  than  any 
body  else,  etc.  So  I  decided  to  make  the  address,  but 
to  soften  some  declarations  a  little. 

Certain  paragraphs  were  as  follows: 

The  war  itself  has  been  going  on  for  nearly  two  years  and 
eight  months,  and  the  hard  military  fact  is  'that  the  Teutons  seem 
to  be  ahead  so  far.  Perhaps  few  people  will  dispute  the  state 
ment  that  the  chances  are  at  least  even  that,  when  the  treaty  of 
peace  is  signed,  Germany  will  be  better  situated  relatively  to  the 
rest  of  Europe  than  she  was  before  the  war,  and  that  she  may 
bring  about  a  condition  such  that  she  will  be  allowed  to  send  her 
fleet  to  this  side. 

If  Germany  is  beaten  our  whole  danger  will  pass  away,  for 
the  present.  But  as  the  chances  seem  at  least  even  that  she  will 
not  be  beaten,  we  must  visualize  the  fact  that  her  fleet  is  twice  as 
powerful  as  ours.  The  superiority  in  ships,  etc.,  was  not  quite 
so  great  as  two  to  one  when  the  war  started,  but  it  was  greater 
than  two  to  one  in  number  of  trained  officers  and  men  and  or 
ganization  and  strategical  skill. 

In  the  summer  of  1913,  the  German  fleet  carried  out  ma 
noeuvres  of  a  kind  that  we  shall  not  be  able  to  carry  out  until 
our  battle-cruisers  shall  have  been  drilled  in  our  fleet,  that  is, 
not  before  1920!  The  German  manreuvres  were  not  secret,  of 
course ;  manoeuvres  of  such  magnitude  must  be  performed  in  the 
sight  of  all  men. 

We  are  more  behind  in  aeronautics  than  in  any  other  thing. 
But,  gentlemen,  while  aeronautics  is  the  weakest  place  in  our 
defence,  aeronautics  is  the  one  bright  spot  in  the  whole  situation. 

The  battleplane  is  the  most  modern  instrument  of  war,  more 
modern  than  the  submarine.  It  combines  the  prime  military  ele 
ments  of  power  and  mobility  in  a  higher  degree  than  does  any 
other  weapon  used  on  land,  and,  if  used  in  sufficient  numbers, 


638     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  KEAR-ADMIEAL 

it  can  direct  an  attack  on  a  fleet,  especially  on  the  light  vessels  of 
a  fleet,  which  they  have  not  yet  learned  to  answer.  .  .  .  There 
would  be  no  trouble  in  this  country  of  one  hundred  million  peo 
ple  in  getting  the  aviators  to  handle  the  battleplanes ;  and  I  am 
informed  on  excellent  authority  that  there  would  be  no  real  dif 
ficulty  in  getting  the  necessary  machines  and  training  the  per 
sonnel  to  handle  them  in  six  months. 

As  we  were  not  at  war  with  Germany  then,  I  had  to 
be  careful  to  confine  my  remarks  to  the  general  subject 
of  the  national  defense. 

The  speech  was  well  received  by  the  audience,  some 
what  to  my  surprise.  I  saw  no  adverse  comments  on 
it  in  the  newspapers,  except  one  in  the  New  York  World; 
but  I  could  see  from  the  attitude  of  my  friends,  and  from 
occasional  guarded  comments  in  newspapers,  that  my 
estimate  of  the  situation  was  not  accepted  at  all,  and  that 
it  created  considerable  irritation.  Some  of  my  friends 
accused  me  in  a  friendly  way  of  being  pro-German,  and 
told  me  it  was  impossible  that  the  Germans  should  over 
come  the  Allies.  But  in  a  very  few  months  they  saw  that 
I  was  right :  some  of  my  friends  told  me  so.  The  visit  of 
the  British  and  French  and  Italian  missions  to  this  coun 
try  shortly  after  we  declared  war,  and  the  outspoken 
statements  of  those  missions  as  to  the  dangerous  condi 
tion  of  the  Allies,  opened  their  eyes  with  a  jerk  to  the 
real  condition  of  affairs.  Their  realization  of  the  true 
situation  became  clearer  after  we  had  entered  into  the 
war,  and  people  began  to  fear  that  we  had  delayed  our  aid 
too  long. 

Mar.  28.  All  N.  Y.  papers  give  headlines  and  plenty  of  space 
to  my  speech.  At  9,  I  received  my  speech  back  from  Sec.  dis 
approved!  I  telephoned  to  Operations  explaining  about  tele 
gram  from  Stayton,  and  requesting  it  be  explained  to  Sec.  I 
telegraphed  to  Stayton,  asking  him  also  to  explain.  Guy  tele 
phoned  Sec.  refused  permission  for  me  to  deliver  my  speech, 
"The  Mind  of  the  Navy,"  to  Elec.  Society.  I  shall  not  attend 
the  meeting  tonight. 


I  received  a  letter  from  Stayton,  reiterating  in  the  most 
positive  terms  the  statement  he  made  in  his  telegram. 

Mar.  29.  Quite  a  demonstration  at  Elec.  Society  last  night 
because  I  could  not  speak,  and  all  N.  Y.  papers  comment  ad 
versely  on  the  fact.  I  got  letter  from  Sec.  asking  why  I  had 
spoken  (before  Navy  League),  etc.  I  answered,  explaining. 
.  .  .  Broke  promise  to  go  and  speak  before  Ladies'  Special  Aid 
Society,  by  reason  of  Secretary's  action. 

Mar.  30.  Special  Aid  Society  made  official  protest  to  Sec. 
about  my  muzzling,  and  N.  Y.  papers  devote  several  inches  to  it. 
Broke  promise  to  speak  before  Aero  Club,  since  I  am  forbidden. 
I  understand  club  is  indignant. 

Apr.  6.  .  .  .  U.  S.  declared  war  today  against  Germany. 
U.  S.  caught  unprepared  again! 

As  a  naval  officer  I  had  no  right  to  concern  myself  with 
the  wisdom  or  unwisdom  of  our  entering  the  war.  But 
as  a  naval  officer  of  experience  I  could  not  help  deploring 
the  fact  that  we  were  unprepared  when  we  did  enter  it. 
For  any  man  to  be  caught  unprepared  by  any  of  the  ordi 
nary  happenings  of  private  life  is  considered  a  mark  of 
inefficiency.  We  all  know  men  who  are  always  a  little 
behind  time,  who  never  see  a  thing  coming  until  they  are 
hit  by  it,  who  seem  to  have  no  foresight.  Such  men  never 
succeed  in  managing  their  own  affairs,  and  are  continu 
ally  getting  into  trouble  of  one  kind  or  another.  We 
see  the  same  thing  in  the  doings  of  organizations  and  of 
nations.  History  is  full  of  accounts  of  disasters,  like 
the  fall  of  Babylon,  when  a  great  government  has  fallen 
before  the  attack  of  warlike  savages  simply  because  of 
its  own  short-sightedness  and  inefficiency  in  regard  to 
such  a  history-old  event  as  the  coming  of  a  war.  In 
many  cases  the  inefficiency  has  been  -due  at  bottom  to 
effeminacy,  -caused  by  too  great  wealth,  and  the  conse 
quent  lack  of  the  rugged  virtues. 

For  several  years  previous  to  the  war  in  Europe  the 
United  States  had  been  following  Babylon  along  the  road 
to  ruin,  and  at  great  speed.  One  commanding  figure 


640     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

warned  the  people  of  the  danger  and  tried  to  rouse  their 
manliness,  but  with  small  success — Theodore  Roosevelt. 
He  was  only  one  man,  and  on  the  side  opposed  to  him 
was  a  vast  army  of  pacifists  and  women,  headed  by  the 
Secretary  of  State.  I  heard  him  (the  Secretary)  declare 
in  a  speech  in  Baltimore,  on  September  12, 1914,  six  weeks 
after  the  war  had  started,  that  a  new  era  of  peace  was 
dawning ! 

People  sometimes  say  a  democracy  cannot  be  efficient. 
Why?  I  do  not  see  why  a  democracy  should  be  any  less 
efficient  than  an  autocracy,  and  I  see  many  reasons  why 
it  should  be  more  efficient.  By  autocracies  I  mean 
hereditary  autocracies.  Any  hereditary  government  is 
limited  in  its  efficiency  by  the  degree  of  efficiency  of  the 
hereditary  monarch;  and  the  monarch  remains  at  the 
head  of  the  government  all  his  life,  and  can  exercise  all 
his  life  the  power  of  a  monarch,  and  be  influenced  all  his 
life  by  his  court,  an  influence  which  has  usually  been  bad. 
In  a  democracy,  on  the  other  hand,  the  ruler  is  elected; 
and  for  this  reason  he  must  almost  necessarily  be  a  man 
of  ability.  Being  elected  for  a  comparatively  brief 
period,  and  being  confronted  with  the  necessity  of  re 
turning  to  his  previous  status  of  private  citizen  after  his 
term  of  service  shall  have  expired,  he  is  not  so  inde 
pendent  of  popular  opinion  as  a  monarch  is,  and  there 
fore  tries  more  diligently  to  do  his  duty.  It  is  true  that 
democracies  are  sometimes  inefficient,  but  it  is  also  true 
that  autocracies  are  frequently  inefficient.  If  a  democ 
racy  is  inefficient  at  any  time,  it  is  the  fault  of  the 
people  in  the  democracy  at  that  time,  and  not  the  fault 
of  democracy.  All  governments  are  sometimes  efficient 
and  sometimes  inefficient.  The  republic  of  the  Athenian 
cities  was  very  efficient  in  the  Persian  Wars,  but  it  soon 
afterward  became  inefficient  and  never  became  efficient 
again.  The  Republic  of  France  was  very  efficient  under 
the  Consul  Napoleon  Bonaparte,  and  the  Empire  of 
France  was  very  efficient  under  Napoleon  the  Great,  but 
very  inefficient  under  Napoleon  III.  The  Republic  of 


THE  UNITED  STATES  DECLARES  WAR     641 

the  United  States  was  inefficient  during  the  four  years 
when  James  Buchanan  was  President,  but  exceedingly 
efficient  during  the  seven  years  when  Theodore  Roosevelt 
was  President.  This  was  because  Theodore  Roosevelt 
was  President. 

I  have  no  taste  for  war.  I  believe  that  war  is  due  to 
the  sinful  passions  of  men,  and  is  caused  mainly  by  sordid 
desires  for  luxury  and  ease;  and  that  while  war  itself 
may  not  be  an  unmixed  evil,  the  causes  which  lead  to  war 
represent  everything  evil  that  is  in  our  nature.  But  if  a 
nation  does  go  to  war,  it  ought  to  go  to  war  prepared. 
It  is  disgraceful  to  be  caught  unprepared.  Much  as  we 
abhor  the  methods  of  the  German  Government  in  using 
its  good  army  and  navy  to  further  its  own  bad  schemes, 
we  must  in  frankness  admit  that  when  she  did  go  to  war, 
the  effectiveness  at  once  displayed  was  unprecedented 
and  magnificent.  The  entry  of  British  Navy  and  of  the 
German  Army  into  the  war  equalled  in  grandeur  any  feat 
ever  performed  by  civilized  men.  The  foresight,  the 
readiness,  the  precision,  the  courage,  the  efficiency  with 
which  they  started  instantly  to  work  have  a  right  to  our 
honest  admiration; — and  we  ought  to  be  honest  enough 
to  give  it. 

Did  the  United  States  step  forth  onto  the  stage  of  war 
with  the  same  magnificent  stride?  Or  did  we  step  on 
the  stage  like  an  actor  who  has  not  learned  his  part,  and 
who  has  not  got  his  costume  ready? 

This  is  the  country  of  George  Washington.  Would 
he  have  admired  the  way  in  which  the  country  of  which 
he  is  called  the  father  stepped  upon  the  stage?  Would 
he  have  been  ashamed  of  his  child?  I  think  so. 


CHAPTER  XLIII 

AERONAUTICS   IN    WAB 

DURING  the  preceding  year  I  had  come  to  have  a 
feeling  of  great  respect  for  the  Aero  Club  of  Amer 
ica,  and  especially  for  its  leading  men,  Alan  R.  Hawley, 
Henry  A.  Wise  Wood,  and  Henry  Woodhouse.  I  had 
gradually  realized  that  they  had  done  more  for  aero 
nautics  than  any  other  men  in  the  United  States,  except 
of  course  the  late  Professor  Langley  and  the  two  Wright 
brothers,  and  that  they  had  the  confidence  of  the  people. 
At  one  time  the  growing  influence  of  the  club  had  in 
curred  the  antagonism  of  politicians,  who  accused  them 
of  having  sordid  aims,  and  had  tickled  the  sense  of  humor 
of  conservatives,  who  called  them  crazy.  But  even  these 
detractors  had  now  been  cured  of  open  opposition,  and 
the  public  at  large  had  gradually  realized  that  the  Aero 
Club  was  pure  in  its  intentions,  and  that  they  saw  things 
which  other  people  did  not  see,  simply  because  their  eyes 
were  higher  above  the  ground. 

Having  held  the  opinion  for  more  than  a  year  that, 
in  our  actual  condition  of  unpreparedness,  aeronautics 
could  supply  greater  naval  and  military  power  than  any 
other  agency,  and  do  it  more  quickly,  I  suggested  infor 
mally  to  individual  governors  of  the  club  that  the  club 
should  urge  sending  a  large  aeroplane  force  to  Europe 
immediately.  My  suggestion  created  considerable  sur 
prise,  but  Mr.  Hawley,  Mr.  Wood,  and  Mr.  Woodhouse 
accepted  it  almost  at  once.  After  a  little  propaganda 
work,  I  then  wrote  a  formal  letter  to  the  club. 

My  letter  and  the  consequent  resolution  of  the  gover 
nors  read  as  follows: 

642 


AERONAUTICS  IN  WAB  643 

NEW  YORK,  N.  Y.,  16  April,  1917. 
Mr.  Alan  R.  Hawley,  President, 
Aero  Club  of  America, 

New  York,  N.  Y. 
My  dear  Mr,  Hawley: 

I  beg  leave  to  suggest  that  the  Aero  Club  point  out  the  ad 
visability  of  sending  to  Europe  a  large  unit  of  aeroplanes,  with 
trained  aviators  and  appropriate  armament. 

One  thousand  battleplanes,  armed  with  rapid-fire  guns,  bombs, 
and  torpedoes,  would  constitute  a  combination  of  power,  mo 
bility,  and  control  at  least  equal  to  that  of  a  hundred  thousand 
soldiers  armed  with  muskets,  and  they  could  be  more  readily 
transported  across  the  ocean  and  put  to  useful  work  in  Europe. 
I  am  aware  of  the  difficulties  of  constructing  so  great  a  num 
ber  of  large  machines ;  but  for  such  work  the  genius  of  our  peo 
ple  and  the  number  and  equipment  of  our  factories  are  especially 
adapted. 

Sincerely  yours, 

B.  A.  FISKE, 
Rear  Admiral,  U.  S.  N.,  Retired. 

Copy  of  resolution  adopted  by  the  board  of  governors 
of  the  Aero  Club  of  America  at  a  meeting  held  on  the  six 
teenth  of  April,  1917 : 

RESOLVED,  That  the  Board  of  Governors  of  the  Aero  Club  of 
America  endorse  the  suggestion  of  Rear  Admiral  Bradley  A. 
Fiske,  that  the  American  Government  send  to  the  Front  as  soon 
as  possible  a  fully  equipped  aeronautic  unit  of  a  thousand  avi 
ators,  allowing  three  machines  for  each  aviator,  as  being  the  best 
means  in  our  opinion  to  quickly  render  the  most  effective  service 
to  the  Allies. 

My  letter  was  published  in  the  New  York  Tribune, 
World,  and  many  other  papers  on  April  19. 

Apr.  29.  Congress  passed  Conscription  Bill  by  a  heavy  ma 
jority!  How  we  plunge  from  one  extreme  to  the  other!  And 
how  we  will  spend  money  by  the  tub  full,  instead  of  having  spent 
it  in  a  reasonable  way  during  the  past  20  years !  What  a  lot  of 
money  Bryan,  Carnegie  &  the  rest  have  already  cost  the  country, 
(for  which  they  themselves  will  never  be  made  to  suffer) 


644     FBOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIRAL 

&  what  a  lot  of  blood  their  propaganda  will  entail !  My  prophe 
cies  are  coming  true.  It  is  silly  to  defer  getting  ready  until 
after  war  has  begun.  Now  for  confusion. 

May  3.  ...  Morn,  papers  publish  statement  by  Br.  Admiralty 
that  Br.  s.  s.  Gena  was  sunk  by  a  torpedo  discharged  by  a  Ger 
man  aeroplane !  So.  This  is  exceedingly  important,  and  shows 
my  invention  that  I  call  Torpedoplane  is  being  added  to  sub 
marine  to  sink  ships ! 

The  statement  in  the  New  York  Times  read  as  follows : 

GERMAN  SEAPLANE  TORPEDOES  AND  SINKS  A  BRITISH  SHIP 

London,  May  2.  The  Admiralty  announces  that  the  British 
steamer  Gena,  of  2,784  tons,  was  sunk  May  1  by  a  torpedo  dis 
charged  from  a  German  seaplane  off  Aldeburg  (Suffolk,  Eng 
land). 

Two  German  torpedoplanes  cooperated  in  this  work. 
One  was  brought  down  by  gun-fire.  A  sketch  published 
later  showed  that  the  mechanism  for  launching  the  tor 
pedo  was  identical  with  that  described  and  illustrated  in 
my  patent  application. 

The  Popular  Science  Monthly  for  May  published  a 
brief  article  by  me  in  regard  to  the  torpedoplane.  The 
Monthly  called  this  article,  "Defending  America  with 
Torpedoplanes,"  and  illustrated  it  on  the  inside  of  the 
magazine  with  three  striking  pictures,  one  of  which 
showed  a  successful  attack  by  torpedoplanes  on  a  column 
of  battle-ships.  On  the  front  page  of  the  cover  of  the 
magazine  was  an  excellent,  though  highly  colored,  picture 
of  a  large  triplane  dropping  a  torpedo. 

May  9.  ...  Park  Benjamin  has  fine  article  in  Independent 
on  "Fiske  Torpedoplane." 

May  10.  ...  Tribune  has  1st  column  first  page  headed, 
"Vast  War  Machine  Lacks  Motive  Power."  It  lacks  rather 
directive  power;  no  one  knows  what  is  needed  to  be  done — 
every  one  simply  wants  to  do  something  on  a  big  scale.  Gave 
Benjamin  sketch  for  device  so  air  craft  can  hear  submarine 
sounds,  and  told  him  make  application  for  patent. 

May  14.  ...  Century  Co.  &  Henry  Woodhouse  ask  me  to 


AERONAUTICS  IN  WAK  645 

write  introduction  to  his  new  book  on  ' '  Naval  Aeronautics. ' '  I 
agreed. 

May  18.     My  dear  mother's  birthday. 

May  19.  Went  down  to  Keyport,  N.  J.,  with  Prest.  Hawley  & 
Henry  Woodhouse  of  Aero  Club,  and  inspected  new  plant  of 
Aeromarine  Co.  Prest.  Uppercu  offered  a  seaplane  &  pilot  to 
test  torpedoplane ! 

May  21.  ...  Council  Nat.  Defence  announced  that  start  will 
begin  on  Big  Aeronautic  Program  very  soon — 3500  aeroplanes 
first  year,  etc.,  &  that  regular  stream  of  aviators  will  flow  to 
help  Allies.  What  an  indictment  of  Ante-War  unpreparedness ; 
&  what  an  endorsement  of  my  recommendation  on  March  18  to 
Aero  Club  to  build  battleplanes,  &  of  April  16  to  send  1000 
aeroplanes  to  Europe  &  my  recommendation  to  Am.  Defense 
Society  to  send  seaplanes  to  Europe  to  preserve  England's  food 
supply ! 

May  27.  ...  A  book  called  "Naval  Aeronautics"  written  by 
Henry  Woodhouse  is  to  be  published  next  month  by  Century  Co. 
I  have  written  the  3d  and  4th  chapters  and  the  "Foreword." 

May  29.  ...  I  called  on  Comdr.  J.  D.  J.  Kelley  (retired), 
on  editorial  staff  N.  Y.  Herald,  showed  him  Admiral  Sir  Regi 
nald  Custance's  letter  in  London  Times  of  May  9,  1917,  &  said  I 
thought  Germany's  submarines  could  be  stopped  from  coming 
out  of  German  ports  by  British  watercraft  (small)  going  into  & 
running  shallow  waters  near  German  coast  &  countermining  the 
mines,  if  German  warships  could  be  kept  off  from  the  British 
small  water  craft,  and  that  they  could  be  kept  off  by  say  100 
torpedoplanes !  Kelley  was  seemingly  much  impressed,  &  said 
he  would  take  up  the  matter  in  N.  Y.  Herald.  I  said  I  wished 
he  would :  as  I  felt  a  delicacy  as  to  doing  it,  being  the  inventor. 

May  31.  Morning  papers  publish  long  accounts  of  how  Ger 
many  stole  my  torpedoplane,  etc.,  and  sank  Gena.  .  .  .  N.  Y. 
Tribune  has  column  headed,  "X  (mentioning  name  of  former 
Aid  for  Material)  May  Command  Atlantic  Fleet." 

This  column  was  written  by  Mr.  C.  W.  Gilbert,  from 
Washington,  and  said  that  the  navy  was  very  much 
aroused  by  this  possibility,  not  because  X  was  of  Ger 
man  parentage,  but  because,  in  the  controversy  between 
Secretary  Daniels  and  me,  X,  aid  for  material  then, 
took  the  secretary's  side.  One  of  the  paragraphs  read: 


646     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

When  it  was  all  over,  Fiske  was  more  or  less  rusticated,  and 
X  went  up  swiftly  from  a  captain's  position  to  a  full  admiral's 
job  at  the  head  of  the  Asiatic  fleet.  In  a  word,  X  is  what 
Fiske  was  not,  a  diplomat,  and  used  his  diplomacy  in  ways  the 
navy  despised.  Daniels  loved  him  and  the  navy  loved  him  not. 

June  1.  Secretary  denies  X  is  to  be  C.  in  C.  Atlantic  Fleet. 
N.  Y.  Herald  has  fine  editorial  on  my  torpedoplane. 

June  3.  Sunday.  Herald  publishes  letter  from  Park  Benja 
min  saying  Dept.  was  repeating  history,  in  treating  me  as  it  had 
done  in  matter  of  torpedoplane.  N.  Y.  World  publishes  letter 
from  London  of  May  20,  saying  the  use  of  torpedo  from  German 
seaplane  was  really  an  old  idea,  that  British  naval  officers  had 
experimented  on  the  device  in  latter  part  of  1913  &  in  1914, 
etc.,  etc. !  This  ignores  the  fact  that  it  was  an  American  inven 
tion,  and  that  Army  and  Navy  Journal  published  a  detailed  ac 
count  of  my  patent  of  July  16, 1912,  on  June  28, 1913,  &  that  the 
Times  copied  it — substantially — the  next  day ! ! 

June  4.  N.  Y.  Herald  has  my  article  (unsigned)  with  chart 
of  Zeebrugge,  etc.,  headed  "Torpedoplane  Valuable  Weapon  to 
Hold  U-Boats  at  Their  Bases." 

This  article  discussed  the  value  of  torpedoplanes  for 
torpedoing  submarines  before  they  could  get  into  deep 
waters  and  thus  keeping  them  from  leaving  their  bases. 

June  7.  ...  Making  crude  experiments  as  to  making  ships, 
aeroplanes,  etc.,  etc.,  invisible  by  covering  them  with  mirrors. 

On  June  7th,  Land  and  Water  of  London,  England,  pub 
lished  my  article,  "The  Nelson  Touch."  This  article 
was  an  appreciation  of  Nelson  both  as  an  officer  and  a 
man. 

June  9th.  .  .  .  North  American  Review  asks  me  to  write  arti 
cle  on  "What  the  navy  ought  to  do  and  can  do."  I  do  not  see 
how  I  can  write  anything  not  distinctly  critical — &  so  I  do  not 
think  I  shall  do  it.  N.  Y.  Sun  says  Sec.  War  Baker  will  send 
100,000  aviators  to  Europe.  Nonsense.  He  is  merely  follow 
ing  my  lead  &  trying  to  go  me  one  better. 

June  13.  My  63d  birthday.  Adm.  Peary  gave  splendid  tes 
timony  as  to  paramount  value  of  aircraft  in  present  war,  neces 
sity  of  sending  large  numbers  of  aviators  to  Europe,  etc.,  etc. 


AERONAUTICS  IN  WAK  647 

Papers  also  say  War  Dept.  is  going  to  send  1000  aviators  a 
month  to  France!  Letter  from  Cronan  says  I  may  quote  him 
as  to  Sypher's  telling  him  he  took  my  letter  from  Dept.  files  and 
gave  it  to  X,  Aid  for  Material.  This  was  Unpreparedness  letter. 

June  14.  ...  N.  Y.  Tribune  has  editorial  headed,  "Investi 
gate,"  which  ends  with  a  recommendation  that  Sec.  Daniels  in 
vestigate  how  "famous  Fiske  letter  was  lost,"  etc. 

June  15.  ...  H.  E.  Coffin  testified  before  Senate  Military 
Committee  that  600  million  dollars  will  be  needed  for  air  craft 
—that  we  should  put  our  main  effort  there,  etc.  I  made  this 
proposition  to  Aero  Club  about  April  13,  &  it  was  endorsed  by 
Board  of  Governors  on  April  16,  sent  to  Prest.,  Cabinet  Officers 
and  Council  National  Defense  &  published  in  morning  papers  on 
April  19.  Wrote  letter  to  Prest.  Hawley,  proposing  air  attack 
on  Kiel  and  Wilhelmshaven. 

This  letter  read  as  follows: 

June  15,  1917. 

Referring  to  my  letter  to  you  of  April  16th,  1917,  in  which  I 
suggested  sending  to  Europe  a  large  unit  of  aeroplanes  with 
trained  aviators  and  appropriate  armament;  referring  also  to 
the  favorable  endorsement  of  this  letter  by  the  Board  of  Gover 
nors  of  April  16th,  and  referring  also  to  the  present  proposition 
of  the  Aircraft  Production  Board  of  the  Council  of  National 
Defense,  which  proposes  similar  action  on  a  very  large  scale,  I 
beg  leave  to  submit  to  your  attention  the  following  facts : 

1.  By  far  the  most  immediate  and  alarming  danger  in  the  pres 
ent  situation  is  the  menace  to  the  food  supply  of  England  and 
France  that  is  caused  by  the  German  submarine. 

2.  The  most  effective  foe  to  the  submarine  is  the  aircraft;  for 
flying  over  the  long  distances  that  seaplanes  must  traverse, 
considerable  size  and  power  are  required. 

3.  The  British  torpedoplanes  which  sank  four  Turkish  ships  in 
the  Sea  of  Marmora  in  August,  1915,  were  of  considerable 
size  and  power;  the  German  torpedoplanes  which  sank  the 
British  steamer  Gena  off  the  coast  of  England  May  1,  1917, 
were  also  of  considerable  size  and  power. 

4.  The  success  of  this  attack  without  doubt  encourages  the  Ger 
mans  to  develop  the  torpedoplane. 

5.  The  German  Naval  General  Staff  realize  the  value  of  concen 
tration  of  power  and  mobility  in  as  large  units  as  possible. 


648     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

6.  The  torpedoplane  embodies  a  greater  concentration  of  power 
and  mobility  than  does  any  other  mechanism;  for  its  cost, 
the  torpedoplane  is  the  most  powerful  and  mobile  weapon 
which  exists  at  the  present  day. 

7.  An  attack  by  a  large  number  of  German  torpedoplanes  armed 
with   guns   to   defend   themselves   from   fighting   aeroplanes 
would  be  a  powerful  menace  to  the  British  fleet. 

8.  An  attack  by  Allied  torpedoplanes  armed  with  guns  to  defend 
themselves   from  fighting   aeroplanes  would   be   a  powerful 
menace  to  the  German  fleet,  and  if  made  in  sufficient  numbers, 
would  give  the  Allies  such  unrestricted  command  of  the  North 
Sea,  even  of  the  shallow  parts  near  the  German  coast,  that 
German  submarines  would  be  prevented  from  coming  out  from 
German  ports,  the  submarine  menace  abolished,  and  all  chance 
of  German  success  wiped  out. 

I  beg  leave  also  to  point  out  that  an  inspection  of  the  map  ot 
Europe  shows  that  in  air  raids  over  the  land,  the  strategical  ad 
vantage  lies  with  Germany,  because  her  most  important  towns, 
like  Berlin,  are  farther  inland  than  the  most  important  towns  of 
the  Allies,  like  London ;  so  that  aeroplanes  of  the  Allies  in  order 
to  reach  Berlin  would  have  to  fly  over  greater  distances  while 
exposed  to  the  fire  of  other  aeroplanes  than  do  aeroplanes  of  the 
Germans  in  going  to  London.  For  raids  on  naval  vessels,  how 
ever,  the  strategical  advantage  lies  with  the  Allies  because  their 
control  of  the  deep  parts  of  the  North  Sea  enables  them  to  estab 
lish  a  temporary  aeronautical  base  of  mother  ships  sufficiently 
close  to  the  German  fleet  to  enable  the  British  to  launch  a  tor 
pedoplane  attack  from  it  on  the  German  fleet  in  Kiel  and  Wil- 
helmshaven,  while  the  Germans  could  not  possibly  establish  an 
aeronautical  base  sufficiently  close  to  the  British  fleet.  This 
gives  the  Allies  the  great  advantage  of  the  offensive.  It  would 
be  possible,  provided  a  distinct  effort  is  made,  for  the  Allies  to 
send  a  large  number  of  aeroplane  mother  ships  to  a  point  say  50 
miles  west  of  Heligoland ;  and  for  a  large  force  of  fighting  aero 
planes  and  torpedoplanes  to  start  from  this  place  about  two  hours 
before  dawn,  reach  Kiel  Bay  and  Wilhelmshaven  about  dawn, 
attack  the  German  fleets  there,  and  sink  the  German  ships.  The 
distance  from  Heligoland  to  Kiel  is  about  ninety  land  miles,  and 
to  Wilhelmshaven  about  forty-five. 

Of  course,  the  attack  would  be  resisted  by  German  aeroplanes, 
and  fighting  would  be  needed ;  but  no  war  up  to  the  present  time 


AERONAUTICS  IN  WAR  649 

has  been  decided  except  by  fighting,  and  in  the  present  ease,  the 
Allies,  now  that  the  United  States  has  joined  them,  could  unques 
tionably  put  an  overwhelming  number  of  aeroplanes  into  the 
battle. 

I  beg  leave  to  also  call  your  attention  to  the  fact  that : 

(a)  The  successful  attacks  made  by  the  Confederate  ironclad 
Merrimac   at   Hampton   Roads   initiated   a  menace  to   the 
United  States  that  caused  terror  through  the  North ; 

(b)  That  this  menace  was  obliterated  twenty-four  hours  later 
by  the  Monitor; 

(c)  That  unless  the  Monitor  had  appeared,  the  Merrimac  could 
have  prevented  the  blockade  of  the   southern  coast,   and 
therefore  the  collapse  of  the  Confederacy; 

(d)  That  not  only  did  the  Monitor  save  the  United  States,  but  it 
saved  the  United  States  because  it  appeared  in  time; 

(e)  That,  if  the  Monitor's  appearance  had  been  deferred  even 
one  month,  it  would  probably  have  been  too  late. 

I  beg  leave  to  recommend  that  the  Aero  Club  bring  this  matter 
to  the  attention  of  the  proper  persons.  I  need  not  say  that  the 
means  I  suggest  should  be  merely  additional  to  all  other  means, 
now  used  and  proposed. 

(Signed)  BRADLEY  A.  FISKE, 
Rear  Admiral,  U.  S.  N.,  Retired. 

June  17.  ...  N.  Y.  Sun  has  about  1500  words  about  the  value 
of  my  torpedoplane. 

June  18.  ...  N.  Y.  morning  papers  say  Prest.  will  ask  for  six 
hundred  million  dollars  for  aeroplanes,  etc.,  and  Sec.  of  War 
Baker  endorses  plan  to  send  large  force  of  aviators  to  Europe, 
following  plan  I  proposed  to  Aero  Club  on  Apr.  16,  which  was 
published  in  papers  Apr.  19 ! 

Apr.  1.9.  N.  Y.  Herald  is  launching  a  big  boom  for  American 
Aerial  Supremacy,  especially  in  hydroaeroplanes. 

June  20.  ...  I  went  out  to  Army  Aviation  field  at  Mineola, 
with  Prest.  Hawley  of  Aero  Club,  Woodhouse,  and  a  dozen 
young  French  army  aviators  who  have  come  to  U.  S.  to  teach  our 
aviators.  Then  I  attended  meeting  of  Board  of  Governors  of 
Aero  Club,  who  considered  my  letter  of  June  15  to  Prest.  Haw- 
ley,  endorsed  it  heartily,  resolved  to  send  copies  to  Congress  & 
to  give  it  to  the  press.  Their  resolution  also  recognized  the  fact 
that  the  present  movement  to  send  a  large  unit  of  aeroplanes, 


650     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

etc.,  to  Europe  was  in  accordance  with  my  proposal  in  my  letter 
to  Prest.  Hawley,  of  April  16,  1917,  which  was  approved  by 
Governors,  &  published  in  newspapers  on  April  19! 

June  23.  ...  New  York  morning  papers  (except  Sun)  pub 
lish  my  letter  of  June  15  to  Aero  Club  in  which  I  recommend  a 
big:  squadron  of  torpedoplanes,  to  attack  Kiel  &  Wilhelmshaven. 

June  24.  ...  N.  Y.  Herald  &  Times  have  fine  Aeronautical 
cartoons;  other  papers  also  show  great  interest. 

June  25.  ...  N.  Y.  Times  has  brief  minor  editorial  in  favor 
of  my  Kiel  attack  suggestion. 

June  28.  N.  Y.  Times  has  an  editorial  a  column  long,  headed 
"The  Torpedoplane"  that  is  favorable  in  the  highest  way. 

June  29.  Carrie's  birthday.  .  .  .  Wrote  letter  to  Prest.  Aero 
Club  insisting  on  Air  attack  in  Kiel,  Wilhelmshaven,  etc. 

My  letter  read  as  follows : 

NEW  YORK,  June  27th,  1917. 
My  dear  Mr.  Hawley: 

Referring  to  my  previous  letters  to  you,  which  pointed  out 
that  the  United  States  could  give  more  effective  aid  to  the  Allies 
by  means  of  aircraft  than  by  any  other  means ;  referring  to  the 
statements  that  public  officials  have  made  during  the  last  two 
weeks,  which  show  a  general  approval  of  this  idea ;  referring  also 
to  the  fact  that  more  attention  has  been  attracted  to  the  employ 
ment  of  aircraft  over  the  land  than  to  their  employment  over 
the  water,  I  beg  leave  to  state  that  in  my  opinion  a  grave  mis 
take  is  being  made  in  overlooking  the  importance  of  aerial  oper 
ations  against  the  German  fleet  and  U-boat  bases. 

My  opinion  is  based  on  the  following  considerations: 

1.  The  danger  on  the  sea  threatens  the  Allies  more  immedi 
ately,  vitally  and  intimately — than  does  the  danger  on  the 
land,  because  it  involves  the  commerce  of  the  entire  world  and 
threatens  soon  to  stop  their  supply  of  actual  food  and  fuel. 
The  danger  on  the  land,  great  as  it  is,  is  not  so  great  as  it  is 
on  the  sea,  because  it  would  take  a  longer  time  in  which  to 
bring  about  disaster  and  because  the  disaster  would  be  more 
restricted  as  to  locality  and  amount. 

2.  Although  major  operations  on  both  land  and  sea  are  now 
practicable  with  aircraft,  no  successes  on  land  which  can  rea 
sonably  be  expected  within  the  next  twelve  months  would 


651 

weaken  Germany  much,  whereas  a  successful  attack  on  her 
fleet  would  ruin  her. 

Such  an  attack  could  be  made  within  the  next  six  months  if 
adequate  energy  were  employed. 

3.  A  torpedo  discharged  from  a  torpedoplane  at  a  ship  has 
the  whole  length  and  underwater  body  of  the  ship  as  a  target 
and  is  fired  under  conditions  practically  identical  with  the 
conditions  under  which  it  is  fired  from  a  destroyer ;  so  that  it 
is  fired  under  the  conditions  for  which  it  has  been  developed 
and  in  which  naval  officers  have  been  trained.  This  means 
that  if  a  torpedo  is  fired  at  a  ship  from  a  given  distance  it  has 
a  much  greater  chance  of  hitting  that  ship  than  would  a  bomb 
dropped  from  a  height  equal  to  that  distance.  Conversely, 
with  any  given  chance  of  hitting,  the  torpedo  could  be  dis 
charged  from  a  much  greater  distance  than  the  height  from 
which  a  bomb  could  be  dropped. 

I  beg  leave  also  to  call  your  attention  to  the  persistent  demand 
of  a  large  section  of  the  British  public,  headed  by  Mr.  Winston 
Spencer  Churchill,  for  an  attack  against  the  German  fleet.  Up 
to  the  present  time  the  British  Admiralty  has  not  thought  that  a 
successful  attack  could  be  made  by  naval  vessels.  In  my  opinion 
a  successful  attack  could  be  made,  with  the  assistance  of  tor- 
pedoplanes. 

It  is  a  matter  of  common  knowledge  that  the  oil  supply  of 
the  British  fleet  is  so  seriously  threatened  that  the  use  of  her 
newest  and  best  vessels,  which  burn  oil  exclusively,  may  soon 
become  impossible.  Before  the  shortage  of  oil  becomes  so  great 
as  actually  to  cripple  the  fleet  would  it  not  be  wise  to  venture  an 
attack,  backed  up  by  an  overwhelming  force  of  torpedoplanes, 
which  contribute  that  freedom  from  danger  from  mines  and  sub 
marines,  which  is  the  only  element  of  success  that  is  lacking  now  ? 
In  my  judgment,  this  demands  serious  and  prompt  consideration. 
I  respectfully  request  that  you  bring  this  urgent  question  to 
the  attention  of  the  proper  persons. 

(Signed)  B.  A.  FISKE, 
Rear  Admiral,  U.  S.  N.,  Retired. 

June  30.  All  N.  Y.  a.  m.  papers  except  Times  published  my 
letter,  in  full  or  in  part.  .  .  .  Mr.  H.  F.  Price  wants  to  get  up 
organization  p.d.q.  to  manufacture  torpedoplanes,  inasmuch  as 
Navy  Dept.  will  not. 


652     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

July  2.  ...  Park  Benjamin  has  fine  article  in  Independent  on 
"Third  Dimension  in  War,"  saying  my  torpedoplane  is  only 
remedy  for  submarine,  etc. 

July  3.  ...  Arthur  Pollen  made  speech  in  Washington  last 
night,  in  which  he  declared  subm.  danger  is  the  greatest  peril 
and  that  all  depends  on  us  and  Br.  navies,  and  on  the  "head 
ship"  of  those  two  navies! 

July  5.  ...  A.  H.  Pollen  made  long  speech  ai  Sherry's 
last  night  (I  was  there)  in  which  he  said  no  solution  of  U-boat 
problem  is  in  sight,  Admiralty  has  failed  thus  far,  and  U.  S. 
must  contribute  a  plan!  So  far  as  I  know,  I  am  the  only  one  on 
the  Allies'  side  'to  contribute  any  plan  whatever.  The  Allies 
have  simply  fought  a  defensive  war  on  lines  laid  down  by  Ger 
many. 

July  7.  I  went  to  Huntington  Bay  with  Mr.  Hawley  and  Mr. 
Woodhouse  and  inspected  Navy  Aviation  Station  there,  the  ex 
penses  of  which  are  paid  by  private  parties ! ! ! 

July  8.  .  .  .  N.  Y.  Times  has  editorial  "Get  the  Aeroplanes 
Ready." 

July  10.  ...  Herald  says  Sec.  Nav.  now  asks  for  45  millions 
for  naval  aeronautics !  Gosh.  ...  If  he  had  only  followed  my 
urgent  recommendations  to  develop  aeronautics  when  I  was  Aid 
for  Operations,  and  his  official  military  adviser !  If  he  had  only 
refrained  from  smashing  the  Division  of  Aeronautics  that  I  had 
built  up  with  so  much  labor ! 

Believing  as  I  had  done  for  seven  years  that  aero 
nautics  was  to  hold  a  tremendously  important  part  in 
warfare,  and  realizing  that  everything  which  I  had  pre 
viously  believed  and  urged  regarding  aeronautics  had 
been  more  than  verified  by  the  events  of  the  war  in  Eu 
rope,  I  noted  with  a  stupefied  feeling  the  fact  that  even 
after  the  United  States  had  entered  into  the  war  the 
navy  virtually  ignored  aeronautics.  The  action  of  the 
Secretary  and  Admiral  Benson  in  their  testimonies  be 
fore  Congress  in  1916,  belittling  the  advantages  of  aero 
nautics,  were  amazing  enough  to  a  man  who  felt  as  I 
did;  but  to  note  that  no  action  was  taken  even  after  we 
had  entered  the  war,  was  to  feel  that  I  was  crazy  or  that 
some  one  else  was.  When  we  entered  the  war,  the  secre- 


AERONAUTICS  IN  WAR  653 

tary  of  the  navy  was  authorized  to  expend  one  hundred 
and  fifteen  million  dollars  to  put  the  navy  into  state  of 
readiness  for  war.  I  looked  in  the  papers  carefully  to  see 
how  much  of  this  had  been  expended  for  aeronautics, 
but  I  could  not  see  that  a  cent  of  it  was  so  spent.  If  this 
were  not  the  most  inventive  and  industrial  country  in  the 
world,  if  it  were  not  that  the  aeroplane  was  invented  here, 
and  if  it  were  not  that  the  British  and  German  navies  had 
expended  enormous  sums  for  naval  aeronautics,  and  were 
still  expending  enormous  sums,  I  might  have  been  able 
to  understand  it.  But  under  the  conditions  as  they 
actually  were  I  could  not  understand  at  all  the  inaction 
of  the  navy  in  regard  to  aeronautics.  If  any  lesson  has 
been  taught  by  history  more  clearly  than  any  other  les 
son,  if  anything  has  been  taught  by  the  experience  of 
business  and  of  daily  life,  it  is  that  if  one  does  not  keep 
up  with  the  procession  he  will  be  left  behind. 

July  13.  ...  I  went  to  Keyport,  N.  J.,  with  President  Haw- 
ley  to  see  test  of  torpedoplane,  using  dummy  torpedo.  Two  men 
were  carried  besides  the  torpedo,  and  the  seaplane  could  barely 
rise.  The  dummy  was  dropped  once  o.  k. 

July  20.  N.  Y.  morning  papers  show  that  people  at  last  ap 
preciate  the  gravity  of  submarine  situation.  A  N.  Y.  Herald 
reporter  held  interview  with  me,  and  is  to  send  copy  of  inter 
view  to  Sec.  Navy,  asking  permission  to  publish  it. 

On  July  21  The  Independent  published  an  article  by 
me  called  " Naval  Power  and  National  Efficiency,"  which 
pointed  out  the  absolute  necessity  of  having  our  war 
preparations  guided  by  men  versed  in  strategy.  One 
sentence  read,  "The  conduct  of  war  and  the  conduct  of 
preparation  for  war  are  controlled  by  three  agencies, 
strategy,  logistics  and  invention." 

July  24.  ...  Collier's  has  an  article  by  Carl  Snyder,  saying 
we  must  down  the  submarine  now,  and  saying  torpedoplane  is  to 
be  a  weapon  more  powerful  than  the  submarine. 

July  25.  Had  talk  with  Major  Perfetti  of  Italian  Flying 
Corps ;  he  said  Italy  and  Caproni  will  gladly  do  all  I  want  with 


654     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

the  Caproni  triplane  now  coming  to  U.  S.  This  is  fine :  I  want 
to  make  it  into  a  big  torpedoplane ! 

July  30.  Ensign  Dodge  (Ret)  has  come  from  Minneapolis, 
saying  he  has  $25,000  pledged,  $75,000  more  in  sight,  to  form 
torpedoplane  unit. 

Aug.  12.  N.  Y.  Herald  has  picture  and  prophecy  of  useful 
ness  of  the  Torpedoplane.  .  .  .  N.  Y.  Sun  of  Aug.  11  had  pic 
ture  Caproni  triplane  and  prophecy  of  usefulness  of  giant  aero 
plane.  Good. 

Aug.  14.  Sci.  American  August  11  has  editorial  saying  that 
the  position  of  Sec.  Nav.  is  now  almost  most  important  in  the 
whole  world. 

Aug.  15.  Mailed  to  Mr.  Hawley  a  letter  as  to  use  of  powerful 
torpedoplanes,  etc. 

This  letter  was  as  follows : 

JAMESTOWN,  E.  I.,  August  15,  1917. 
My  dear  Mr.  Hawley: 

During  the  past  five  months  I  have  had  the  honor  of  writing 
you  a  number  of  letters,  which  pointed  out  the  capabilities  of 
powerful  aeroplanes  for  offensive  use  in  war,  the  advisability  of 
sending  a  large  force  of  aeroplanes  to  Europe,  the  paramount 
menace  of  the  submarine  and  the  ability  of  aeronautics  to  over 
come  that  menace. 

The  present  war  has  shown  such  complete  preparation,  not 
only  in  material  but  also  in  strategic  plan  on  the  part  of  the 
Germans,  and  such  a  far-sighted  view  of  the  possibilities  of  sub 
marines  supported  by  mines  and  a  fleet,  that  the  desirability  be 
came  obvious  six  months  ago  of  replying  with  some  unexpected 
method  or  device,  which  the  Germans  had  not  provided  against 
in  their  plans. 

The  mere  killing  and  wounding  of  individual  men  has  never 
of  itself  determined  the  result  of  any  modern  war;  because  the 
men  who  are  not  killed  or  wounded  were  able  to  keep  up  fighting, 
if  supplied  with  adequate  food-fuel  and  munitions.  What  has 
decided  the  result  of  every  modern  war  has  been  the  shutting  off 
of  the  means  of  effective  fighting;  sometimes  by  stopping  the 
transportation  of  troops,  food,  fuel  and  munitions,  and  some 
times  by  the  actual  taking  of  the  seat  of  government  of  one  of 
the  belligerents.  In  our  Civil  War,  public  attention  was  fastened 


AERONAUTICS  IN  WAR  655 

on  the  land  battles,  by  reason  of  the  number  of  men  engaged  in 
them,  and  the  terrible  destruction  of  life  and  limb.  The  land 
fighting  kept  up  without  decisive  advantage  to  either  side,  until 
the  naval  blockade  had  seriously  reduced  the  supplies  that  came 
from  Europe ;  but  as  soon  as  the  blockade  had  become  effective 
in  this  way,  the  Confederate  Army  ran  short  of  munitions  and 
equipments,  and  could  no  longer  fight  effectively.  Then  the 
Confederate  Army  was  defeated,  and  Richmond,  the  capital,  lay 
defenseless  before  the  troops  of  Grant. 

In  our  war  with  Spain,  the  operations  of  the  Army  in  Cuba 
and  the  Philippines  exercised  little  influence  on  the  outcome  of 
the  war;  but  the  destruction  of  practically  the  entire  Spanish 
Navy  at  Manila  and  Santiago  left  Spain  so  obviously  exposed 
to  blockade  and  attack  by  our  fleet,  that  Spain  gave  up  at  once. 
In  the  war  between  Russia  and  Japan,  tens  of  thousands  of  sol 
diers  were  killed  and  wounded  in  Manchuria,  without  apparent 
result ;  but  as  soon  as  the  Russian  fleet  was  destroyed  in  the  naval 
battle  of  Tsushima,  the  Russians  saw  their  inability  to  transport 
troops  and  munitions  to  invade  the  island  empire  of  Japan,  no 
matter  how  many  Japanese  soldiers  they  killed  in  Manchuria; 
and  so  they  came  to  terms  of  peace.  The  battle  of  Tsushima  had 
an  effect  curiously  like  Nelson's  battle  of  Trafalgar,  which  pre 
vented  Napoleon  from  transporting  troops  and  munitions  to 
invade  the  island  Kingdom  of  Great  Britain. 

In  the  present  war,  hundreds  of  thousands  of  soldiers  have 
been  killed  and  wounded  in  France,  seemingly  without  effect ;  but 
the  German  submarine,  without  destroying  many  lives  in  com 
parison  with  the  number  of  lives  destroyed  by  the  armies,  has 
been  effecting  a  continuous  reduction  in  the  means  of  transpor 
tation  by  which  the  Allies  get  the  food,  fuel  and  ammunition 
which  they  need  to  prosecute  the  war.  Thus  far,  the  submarine 
seems  to  have  been  a  more  potent  factor  in  deciding  the  result  of 
the  war  than  all  the  armies  on  both  sides.  As  in  the  wars  just 
mentioned,  it  has  been  operations  on  the  sea,  not  operations  on 
land,  that  have  been  the  most  important  factor. 

The  Navy  of  Germany  has  scarcely  been  attacked  at  all,  al 
though  her  navy  is  inconsiderable  in  comparison  with  her  army, 
and  although,  if  her  navy  were  destroyed  or  even  crippled,  Ger 
many  's  only  hope  of  victory,  the  submarine,  would  be  eliminated. 
Her  navy  has  not  been  attacked,  because  it  has  been  believed  to 
be  too  heavily  entrenched  behind  mines  to  justify  an  attack  by 


656     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAK-ADMIRAL 

sea  craft.     This  was  skillfully  arranged  by  Germany  in  the  light 
of  conditions  as  they  were  before  the  war. 

But  before  the  war,  aeroplanes  were  small  and  unreliable,  and 
the  powerful  bombing  plane  and  torpedoplane  had  not  shown 
their  capabilities  for  offensive  use,  unhindered  by  mines  and  sub 
marines.  These  weapons  constitute  a  new  and  unexpected 
agency ;  so  that  we  seem  forced  to  the  serious — the  very  serious — 
consideration  of  using  them  against  the  naval  ships  of  Germany, 
now  safely  entrenched  behind  miles  of  mine  fields,  from  which 
they  send  forth  their  submarines  to  destroy  the  commerce  of  the 
world. 

I  trust  that  you  will  agree  with  me  in  the  ideas  which  I  have 
just  expressed,  and  that  you  will,  whenever  occasion  warrants, 
bring  them  to  the  notice  of  influential  people.  Your  position  as 
President  of  the  Aero  Club  of  America,  and  the  record  of  the 
Club  for  patriotic  service  of  the  highest  order  of  disinterested 
ness  and  efficiency,  mark  you  as  especially  fitted  to  bring  before 
the  people  the  ability  of  aeronautics  to  assist  their  cause. 

With  great  esteem,  I  am, 

Very  sincerely  yours, 

(Signed)  BRADLEY  A.  FISKE. 

Aug.  17.  Letter  from  Lieut.  McDonnell  at  Huntington  Bay 
says  my  dummy  torpedo  was  successfully  dropped  from  aero 
plane  Aug.  14. 

Aug.  19.  N.  Y.  Herald  has  full  copy  of  my  last  letter 
(Aug.  15)  to  Mr.  Hawley  and  Tribune  has  partial  copy.  I  think 
N.  Y.  American  has  it  too. 

Aug.  21.  ...  Went  to  Torpedo  Station;  find  officers  sympa 
thetic  as  to  Torpedoplane  and  wish  to  help.  .  .  .  Life  has  article 
by  T.  L.  Masson,  "A  Message  from  the  Air,"  urging  America 
to  wake  and  strike  Germany  through  the  air. 

Aug.  24.  Godfrey  L.  Cabot  came  from  Wash,  to  see  me  and 
we  talked  after  dinner.  He  brought  letter  of  introduction  from 
Senator  Lodge  and  said  he  wants  to  help  me  financially  and 
otherwise,  to  demonstrate  practicability  of  torpedoplane.  He  is 
Lieutenant  in  U.  S.  Naval  Flying  Reserve. 

Aug.  25.  Mr.  Cabot  signed  an  ''agreement,"  which  I  signed 
also,  by  which  he  obligates  himself  to  the  extent  of  $30,000  to  get 
a  ' '  Torpedo  carrying  seaplane ' ' !  This  is  patriotism  of  the  first 
order!  absolutely  disinterested  and  fine!  Telegram  from  Lord 


MY  LETTER  OF  SEPTEMBER  9,  1917       657 

Northcliffe  saying  wishes  to  see  me  week  after  my  return  to 
N.  Y. 

Aug.  31.  Made  short  speech  at  entertainment  in  Newport  for 
National  Special  Aid  Society,  which  ended  ' '  We  are  at  war  with 
the  incarnated  combination  of  intellect  and  evil :  we  are  at  war 
with  the  Devil  himself." 

Sept.  3.  Received  notification  from  Aero  Club  of  America 
that  I  have  been  elected  a  Governor ! ! ! !  .  .  .  Engaged  on  article 
on  Naval  Strategy.  My  article  "Air  Power"  comes  out  in 
Naval  Institute. 

Sept.  7.  All  N.  Y.  papers  publish  substance  of  the  announce 
ment  of  Mr.  Cabot's  gift  of  $30,000  to  torpedoplane  develop 
ment. 

Sept.  8.  Rec'd.  copy  of  joint  patent  of  Bradley  A.  Fiske  and 
Elmer  A.  Sperry  on  "Automatic  Gun  Pointing."  N.  Y.  Sun 
has  bully  editorial  headed  ' '  The  Monitor  and  the  Torpedoplane, ' ' 
apropos  of  Mr.  Cabot 's  gift  and  the  fact  that  Ericsson — like  me — 
had  to  get  private  capital  to  develop  his  invention. 

Sept.  9.  Mailed  letter  to  Sec.  recommending  that  Navy  Dept. 
take  the  big  Caproni  triplane — soon  to  arrive  here — and  develop 
a  powerful  torpedoplane  that  can  carry  2500  Ib.  torpedo. 

This  letter  read  as  follows: 

128  West  59th  Street,  New  York,  September  9,  1917. 
From:  Rear  Admiral  Bradley  A.  Fiske,  U.  S.  N.,  Retired. 
To :  The  Secretary  of  the  Navy. 
Subject:  Powerful  Torpedoplanes. 

(1)  The  attention  of  the  Department  may  have  been  called  to 
the  fact  published  in  several  newspapers  that  Mr.  Godfrey  L. 
Cabot,  of  Boston,  placed  $30,000  at  my  disposal  to  be  used  for 
the  construction  of  an  aeroplane  that  could  carry  a  torpedo 
powerful  enough  to  sink  a  modern  battleship.     This  act  of  Mr. 
Cabot  was  entirely  unsolicited  by  me,  and  came  as  a  great  sur 
prise.     I  had  never  met  Mr.  Cabot  until  he  called  on  me  and 
placed  this  money  at  my  disposal  about  two  weeks  ago. 

(2)  I  have  talked  with  a  great  many  naval  officers,  army  offi 
cers,  aviators,  and  other  men  in  various  walks  of  life  about  the 
torpedoplane,  and  they  have  all  told  me  that  they  considered 
that  the  production  of  a  torpedoplane  holding  a  torpedo  power 
ful  enough  to  sink  a  battleship  would  be  a  step  of  the  greatest 
importance  to  this  country.     Some  of  them  thought  that  a  fleet 


658     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIRAL 

of  such  torpedoplanes  could  successfully  attack  the  German  fleet 
at  Kiel  and  Wilhelmshaven ;  some  of  them  thought  that  such  a 
plan  was  rather  risky ;  but  all  of  them,  thought  that  the  torpedo- 
plane  itself  should  be  developed,  either  for  use  in  Europe  or  for 
the  protection  of  our  own  coasts. 

(3)  As  the  Department  may  remember,  I  have  been  engaged 
in  developing  a  torpedoplane  suitable  for  attack  on  destroyers, 
submarines  and  light  craft  generally;  and  the  Department  is 
doubtless  aware  that  the  British  sank  four  Turkish  vessels  in 
August,  1915,  and  that  the  Germans  sank  the  British  merchant 
ship  Gena  on  May  1st,  1917.     There  is  no  instance,  as  far  as  I 
know,  of  any  torpedoplane  being  developed  capable  of  carrying 
a  full  size  torpedo;  but  I  have  heard  well  founded  reports  to 
the  effect  that  the  Germans  were  building  200  very  large  tri- 
planes.     In  view  of  these  facts,  and  in  view  of  the  further  fact 
that  all  naval  experience  shows  the  value  of  designing  new  appa 
ratus  with  sufficient  strength  and  power,  the  conclusion  seems 
unavoidable  that  the  development  of  a  powerful  torpedoplane 
should  be  undertaken  as  soon  as  practicable. 

(4)  There  will  arrive  in  this  country  within  a  few  days  a 
Caproni  triplane  which  seems  ideal   for  this  purpose.     It  is 
propelled  by  three  motors,  aggregating  600  H.  P. ;  and  it  is  said  to 
be   able   to   carry   three   men,   three  machine   guns,    and   2750 
pounds  of  explosives  for  six  hours,  at  a  speed  of  nearly  80  miles 
an  hour.     I   understand   that  this  machine   is   to   be   sent  to 
Langley  Field,  and  that  the  Army  is  to  make  some  tests  with  it. 

(5)  Major  Perfetti,  who  is  at  the  head  of  the  Special  Italian 
Commission  for  Aeronautics  in  the  United  States,  wrote  me  a 
letter  in  which  he  said  that  he  would  instruct  his  staff  to  permit 
me  to  make  any  experiments  that  I  might  desire.     This  was  very 
courteous  on  his  part ;  but  it  occurs  to  me  that  the  experimenta 
tion  could  be  carried  on  more  efficiently  by  the  Navy  Depart 
ment  than  by  myself.     Any  experimentation  which  I  might  do 
would  be  merely  preliminary  to  what  the  Navy  Department  it 
self  would  subsequently  do,  in  case  it  decided  to  take  up  the 
torpedoplane  question  seriously. 

(6)  I  therefore  venture  to  suggest  that  the   Navy   Depart 
ment  consider  the  question  of  fitting  the  Caproni  triplane  for 
carrying  and  launching  a   dummy  torpedo   weighing  at   least 
2500  pounds,   which   is   the  weight,   approximately,   of   a   full 
power  torpedo,  and  of  conducting  experiments  like  those  re- 


MY  LETTER  OF  SEPTEMBER  9,  1917       659 

cently  conducted  at  Huntington  Bay  with  the  small  dummy 
torpedo.  This  work  could  easily  be  carried  out  by  officers  and 
men  of  the  Navy  who  have  been  trained  in  aeronautics,  and  it 
would  be  of  such  a  simple  character  that  it  would  probably  not 
interfere  much  with  their  regular  work. 

(7)  I  should  much  appreciate  a  reply  to  this  letter,  giving 
the  views  of  the  Department  on  this  matter  to  such  an  extent 
as  the  Department  may  think  advisable. 

BRADLEY  A.  FISKE. 

I  have  never  received  an  answer  to  this  letter. 


s 


CHAPTER  XLIV 

REJECTION    OF    THE   TORPEDOPLANE   WITHOUT   TRIAL 

AYS  my  diary: 


Sept.  12.  By  arrangement  and  in  accordance  with  the 
desire  expressed  by  Lord  Northcliffe  in  telegram  Aug.  25  I 
called  on  him  in  p.  m.  I  stayed  %  hour.  Very  interesting  man. 
He  gave  me  copy  of  an  article  by  him  in  World's  Work  and 
a  confidential  letter  to  British  Government  about  aerial  trans 
port,  written  in  May.  Said  he  believed  in  my  torpedoplane  & 
bomb  attack  on  Kiel,  and  said  "I  wish  to  God  you  could  be  in 
England  now  and  stir  them  up. ' ' 

Sept.  14.  ...  The  Caproni  biplane  450  H.  P.  flew  today 
and  carried  15  people,  including  Mayor  of  Norfolk.  I  was 
notified  of  my  election  as  Honorary  Member  of  National  In 
stitute  of  Inventors.  Tribune  publishes  (from  Naval  Insti 
tute)  my  entire  article  "Air  Power"  on  editorial  page. 

Sept.  17.  ...  Aeromarine  Plane  &  Motor  Co  telephones  that 
doubtful  if  they  can  go  ahead  with  torpedoplane  because  of 
contracts  with  Navy  and  Army!  I  fear  that  the  attitude  of 
Secretary  towards  me  will  block  my  efforts  at  bringing  out 
a  powerful  torpedoplane.  My  appreciation  of  Admiral  Luce 
is  published  in  September  number  of  Naval  Institute. 

Sept.  18.  ...  Attended  lunch  given  by  Lord  Northcliffe  in 
honor  of  Prime  Minister  New  South  Wales,  Australia,  160 
guests.  .  .  .  The  chief  guest  made  a  very  fine  speech,  fortifying 
himself  with  a  stiff  drink  of  whisky. 

Sept.  19.  ...  Meeting  Governors  of  Aero  Club.  Rec'd  $100 
check  from  Godfrey  L.  Cabot  for  travelling  expenses,  etc.,  etc. ! 

Sept.  20.  At  headquarters  of  Italian  Aeronautical  Commis 
sion  ;  the  two  head  men  were  away,  but  the  next  in  rank  thought 
it  was  decided  that  I  should  have  loan  of  Caproni  triplane, 
to  try  launching  of  2500  Ib.  torpedo! 

Sept.  22.    Received  letter  from  G.  L.  Cabot,  enclosing  copy 

660 


REJECTION  OF  THE  TOEPEDOPLANE       661 

of  letter  from  him  to  Aero  Club,  telling  them  to  give  me  a 
$1,000  check  he  had  sent  club,  to  be  used  for  torpedoplane 
work. 

Sept.  24.  Bliss  Co.  agreed  orally  to  make  a  wooden  dummy 
torpedo  and  launching  gear  and  as  soon  as  I  supply  them  with 
plans  of  aeroplane  they  will  go  on.  Mr.  Pamilio  of  Italian 
Commission  on  Aeronautics  says  he  has  no  authority  to  promise 
that  I  can  use  a  Caproni  plane  to  try  my  torpedoplane  experi 
ments,  but  he  agreed  to  send  a  cable  to  Major  Perfetti  in  Italy, 
saying  I  want  to  have  Caproni  plane  fly  from  New  York  to 
Hampton  Roads  and  return,  and  drop  a  heavy  Whitehead  tor 
pedo  in  Hudson  River. 

Sept.  27.  Went  to  Washington  night  of  25th  and  returned 
this  morning.  Saw  Italian  600  H.  P.  Biplane,  examined  it  and 
saw  it  start  for  Norfolk.  Benson,  Capt  Irwin  (in  charge  of 
aviation  under  Benson)  and  Asst.  Sec.  Roosevelt  each  told  me 
he  had  not  seen  my  letter  to  Sec.  of  Sept.  9  about  "  Powerful 
Torpedoplanes "  and  expressed  great  surprise  when  I  showed 
a  copy  of  it  to  them.  Navy  seems  to  be  doing  only  a  very 
small  fraction  of  the  work  on  aeronautics  that  Army  is  doing. 

Sept.  30.  Frank  M.  Leavit  and  I  went  to  Langley  Field, 
Virginia,  yesterday,  and  were  very  courteously  received  by  the 
officer  in  command  and  by  the  Italian  officers.  Major  Brown 
said  he  had  orders  from  Signal  Corps  of  Army  in  Washington 
to  do  everything  he  could,  to  help  forward  the  torpedoplane 
experiments,  and  that  he  would  put  50  men  on  the  job  if 
necessary.  We  all  agreed  that  the  Caproni  biplane  is  not  quite 
big  enough  to  carry  torpedo  from  England  to  Kiel  &  return 
to  England,  and  that  it  would  be  better  to  fit  the  launching 
gear  to  the  triplane  that  will  be  ready  as  soon  as  my  dummy 
and  launching  gear  are.  So  Leavitt  is  going  to  design  both  at 
once,  and  the  Bliss  Co.  will  make  them. 

Oct.  11.  At  work  on  " Naval  Strategy."  Army  and  Navy 
expanding  rapidly,  like  balloons. 

Oct.  13.  ...  Letter  from  Glenn  Curtiss  (in  reply  to  one  from 
me)  says  he  is  designing  seaplane  for  carrying  torpedo,  pro 
pelled  by  1000  H.  P.  and  will  let  me  have  figures  in  a  week! 

Oct.  16.  German  offensive  at  Riga  is  progressing  danger 
ously.  Capronis  state  one  of  their  machines  has  flown  875 
miles  continuously  with  3  passengers.  Gabrielle  d'Annunzio 
declares  that,  in  recent  raid  on  Cattoro  the  Italian  aeroplanes 


662     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

flew  more  than  250  miles  without  landmarks  and  using  aero 
planes  fitted  for  land  only — (not  seaplanes  evidently).  These 
are  two  epochal  statements. 

Oct.  17.  Received  notice  that  I  was  again  elected  president 

of  the  Naval  Institute.  I  received  695  votes,  and received 

181  votes.  This  is  my  7th  election!  Made  open  air  speech 
(first  time)  before  oi  polloi  in  Madison  Square,  for  benefit 
Liberty  Loan. 

Oct.  21.  Sunday.  Times  has  letter  from  London,  saying 
fleet  cannot  take  sub.  bases  because  of  mines,  fortifications,  etc. 

I  wrote  letter  for to  sign  tomorrow,  saying  Aeroplanes 

can  do  what  Times  says  fleets  cannot  do.  ...  The  book,  "For 
France"  has  come  out,  with  short  articles  by  135  men  and 
women;  my  article  among  them. 

Oct.  23.  ...  Letter  from  Comdr.  Sypher  says  he  did  take  my 
Unpreparedness  letter  of  Nov.  9,  1914,  out  of  Navy  Dept  files  and 
give  it  to  X  who  put  it  in  his  pocket  I 

Oct.  25.  The  rally  at  Carnegie  Hall  last  night  was  great 
success;  collected  $168,000.  Chairman,  in  introducing  me  as 
speaker,  said  three  men  were  the  head  of  the  Preparedness 
movement,  Gen  Wood,  Theodore  Roosevelt  and  Admiral  Fiske. 
Godfrey  L.  Cabot  called,  and  invited  me  to  make  speech  at 
dinner  Aero  Club  New  England  in  Boston,  Nov.  21.  I  ac 
cepted. 

Oct.  26.  Went  to  Bliss  Co.  factory  with  Cabot  and  saw 
18"  dummy  steel  torpedo  and  my  launching  gear.  We  are 
going  to  see  it  again  Monday. 

Oct.  27.  ...  Letter  from  Glenn  Curtiss  says  torpedoplane 
flying  boat  can  be  made  to  meet  all  my  requirements,  etc. 
Good. 

Oct.  29.  Comdr.  Sypher  writes  me  that  my  letter  of  Nov.  9, 
1914,  was  returned  to  the  Dept.  files,  and  bore  a  receiving  date 
of  ' '  September  13,  1916  " ! ! ! !  Also  that  he  knew  nothing  about 
Lodge  asking  for  it  until  two  months  later,  when  he  was  in 
China. 

Nov.  3.  ...  Telephone  message  from  Bliss  Co.  said  the  dummy 
18  inch  torpedo  and  launching  gear  would  be  shipped  to  Langley 
Field  today. 

Nov.  4.  My  dear  father's  birthday.  Went  to  Trinity  p.  m. 
service  with  Jo,  in  uniform. 


REJECTION  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE       663 

Nov.  12.  ...  At  Annual  Meeting  Aero  Club,  I  was  elected 
Third  Vice  Prest.  &  Governor.  We  drew  up  Resolution  asking 
Congress  to  expend  2  Billions  for  Aeronautics. 

Nov.  16.  Spent  Nov.  14  in  Washington  and  Nov.  15  at  the 
Army  Aeronautic  station  at  Langley  Field. 

Nov.  21.  Went  to  Boston  to  give  address  before  Aero  Club 
of  New  England. 

Nov.  24.  Good  news  from  France  and  Italy  continues.  Jo 
and  I  went  to  luncheon  of  League  for  Political  Education  and 
Jo  stayed  nearly  three  hours  without  much  fatigue.  I  made 
brief  speech  suggesting  "League  for  Strategical  Education. 

Nov.  26.  .  .  .  Benjamin  telephoned  Patent  Office  has  granted 
the  important  claims  in  my  application  for  patent  on  aeroplane 
microphone  combination. 

Nov.  28.  Letter  from  Glenn  Curtiss  says  "Work  for  the 
Navy  Department  has  prevented  considering  our  undertaking 
outside  work:  so  that  we  have  been  obliged  to  let  the  matter 
of  a  design  for  torpedoplanes  stand  where  it  is. " ! !  Pretty  near 
a  knock  out  for  me. 

Dec.  6.  Made  address  at  banquet  of  Economic  Club  on 
"Necessary  Steps  to  Victory"  that  was  well  recevied. 

Dec.  8.  War  declared  on  Austria.  Truce  or  armistice  be 
tween  Germany  and  Russia  also  Rumania.  Germans  succeed 
ing  on  both  French  and  Italian  fronts,  due  doubtless  to  freeing 
of  troops  on  Russian  front.  Germans  will  probably  make  every 
effort  to  give  Allies  a  knock  out  blow  before  U.  S.  can  help. 
This  shows  awful  folly  of  our  delay  in  preparing,  the  delay 
beginning  on  Aug.  1,  1914. 

I  believe  that  the  failure  of  the  United  States  to  begin 
to  prepare  for  war  as  soon  as  the  war  broke  out  in  Eu 
rope  will  go  down  in  history  as  one  of  the  most  important 
facts  of  history.  In  all  the  United  States  there  were  only 
four  men  who  came  out  plainly  before  the  public  and 
urged  preparedness.  These  were  Theodore  Roosevelt, 
Representative  Gardner,  General  Wood,  and  my  humble 
self.  Of  these  I  believe  I  was  the  first  to  act,  as  I  acted 
in  the  early  forenoon  of  August  1,  1914.  I  followed  this 
up  with  my  letter  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  of  Novem 
ber  9,  1914.  Representative  Gardner  advocated  the  sub- 


664     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

ject  courageously  and  forcefully,  but  his  efforts  were 
somewhat  handicapped  by  the  unjust  accusation  that  he 
was  influenced  by  political  motives,  and  that  he  knew 
nothing  of  the  subject,  anyhow.  My  official  testimony,  as 
senior  adviser  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  given  before 
Congress,  on  December  17,  1914,  contradicting  the  testi 
mony  of  the  Secretary  and  declaring  that  it  would  take  at 
least  five  years  to  get  the  navy  ready,  was  probably  the 
thing  which  gave  the  preparedness  movement  its  first 
real  start.  General  Wood  and  I  have  paid  for  our  ac 
tivities  in  ways  that  I  do  not  like  to  think  about.  Gard 
ner  paid  for  his  with  his  life. 

Dec.  10.  Rec'd  notice  from  Patent  Office,  via  Park  Benjamin 
that  I  must  not  communicate  to  anyone  knowledge  of  the  sub 
ject  matter  of  my  application  for  Patent  on  ...  filed  May  23, 
1917.  This  referred  to  my  design  whereby  a  dirigible  balloon 
towed  a  boat,  the  boat  towed  a  submerged  microphone,  &  the 
observer  in  the  dirigible  heard  sounds  from  a  submarine  through 
the  microphone. 

Dec.  12.  Conditions  same  in  Europe.  Congress  to  investi 
gate  cause  of  poor  equipment,  etc.,  of  Army — when  it  is  the  fault 
of  Congress  itself;  ably  assisted  by  Bryan,  Carnegie  &  Jane 
Addams. 

Dec.  14.  ...  The  confusion  that  always  attends  haste  is  now 
beginning  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  public. 

Dec.  15.  Little  change  as  yet.  Allied  Naval  Conference  to 
be  established  in  Europe;  U.  S.  to  be  represented  by  Benson 
and  Sims.  Navy  Committee  in  House  to  investigate  Navy  is 
announced.  How  can  Committee  possibly  find  out  anything, 
except  that  an  enormous  "expansion"  has  taken  place;  and 
much  money  spent  for  personnel  and  material. 

Dec.  19.  Conference  in  office  of  Ford  Marine  Instrument  Co. 
with  officer  (Van  Auken)  from  Bureau  Ordnance,  one  from 
Bausch  Lamb  Co.,  Mr.  Ford  and  me,  endeavoring  to  devise  plan 
to  make  horizometers  that  will  fulfil  desires  of  the  service. 

Dec.  20.  Conditions  little  changed.  Army  investigation 
shows  bad  preparation.  People  seem  surprised!!!  And  Ger 
many  has  been  preparing  since  1640. 

Dec.  21.  ...  Prepared  letter  to  President  Aero  Club. 


BEJECTION  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE       665 

My  letter  to  the  president  of  the  Aero  Club  read  as 
follows : 

n       AT    TT     i  New  York>  Dec-  23,  1917. 

Dear  Mr.  Hawley : 

I  beg  leave  to  recall  to  your  memory  the  various  letters  I  have 
written  to  you  during  the  year  1917,  and  to  point  out  that  the 
plan  I  suggested  to  you  as  soon  as  we  entered  the  war  and  have 
urged  upon  you  since  of  sending  large  units  of  aircraft  to  Eu 
rope  has  been  approved  in  this  country  and  abroad. 

As  the  year  is  now  nearly  ended  and  as  the  question  of  using 
aircraft  in  large  units  is  now  occupying  the  public  attention  in 
a  high  degree,  I  beg  leave  to  request  that  you  will  exert  your 
influence  as  president  of  the  Aero  Club  of  America  to  impress 
the  public  with  the  fact  that  the  project  of  using  aircraft  for 
major  aerial  operations  is  not  a  foolish  notion  of  fanatics  in 
aeronautics,  but  is  a  sound  idea,  based  on  the  principles  of 
strategy. 

PARAMOUNT    IMPORTANCE   OF   STRATEGY 

The  reason  why  it  is  necessary  that  any  plan  of  operation 
should  be  based  on  the  principles  of  strategy  is  that  strategy  is 
the  science  and  the  art  of  planning  and  directing  war.  The1 
reason  why  Alexander  conquered  Darius  three  hundred  years 
before  the  Christian  era  was  the  same  as  the  reason  why  Prussia 
conquered  France  twenty-one  centuries  later,  and  why  the  vari 
ous  great  commanders  in  the  intervening  years  conquered  their 
antagonists.  The  basic  reason  was  not  that  the  victors  fought 
with  the  greater  courage,  or  that  they  possessed  the  better  weap 
ons  and  equipments,  but  that  they  were  directed  by  a  more  far- 
seeing  and  deep-thinking  strategy. 

"Strategy  decides  what  is  to  be  done.  It  has  two  assistants 
for  doing  afterwards  the  things  decided  on;  one  assistant  is 
tactics,  which  actually  fights  each  battle;  the  other  assistant  is 
logistics,  which  provides  the  weapons,  ammunition,  ships,  men, 
transportation,  equipments,  food  and  money.  An  analogy  may 
be  pointed  out  between  warfare  and  almost  any  other  activity 
of  men;  for  instance,  the  production  of  a  play  upon  the  stage 
— strategy  having  its  counterpart  in  the  play  which  is  planned 
and  written;  tactics  having  its  counterpart  in  the  actual  per 
formance  of  the  play  by  the  actors ;  logistics  having  its  counter 
part  in  the  work  of  the  manager  in  providing  the  theatre,  scenery, 
costumes,  players  and  the  money  to  pay  the  bills. 


666     FKOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

A  regular  formula  for  use  in  solving  strategic  problems  was 
invented  and  developed  by  the  German  General  Staff  some  years 
ago,  and  it  has  been  adopted  by  the  armies  and  navies  of  the 
world. 

The  problem  is  divided  into  four  parts: 

(1)  The  mission,  that  is,  the  thing  that  ought  to  be  done. 

(2)  The  difficulties  in  the  way,  such  as  the  forces  of  the  enemy 
and  the  efforts  he  will  probably  make. 

(3)  Our  means  of  accomplishing  the  mission  and  overcoming 
the  forces  of  the  enemy. 

(4)  The  decision. 

If  we  try  to  utilize  this  formula  in  the  present  war  we  see 
at  once  that  the  ' '  mission ' '  is  plain.  It  is  to  whip  Germany. 

When  we  come  to  the  second  part  we  see  that  we  may  divide 
the  forces  of  our  enemy  into  three  parts:  Germany's  economic 
establishment,  Germany's  military  establishment  and  Germany's 
naval  establishment.  These  three  establishments  support  the 
government  of  Germany,  just  as  three  legs  support  a  stool.  They 
are  joined  together  and  are  mutually  dependent  as  are  the  legs 
of  a  stool,  but  if  any  one  is  broken,  the  government  must  fall 
down. 

If  Germany's  economic  establishment  is  broken  down,  Ger 
many  cannot  support  the  Army  and  Navy  and  therefore  will 
have  to  give  up;  if  her  military  establishment  is  broken  down, 
the  Allies  can  march  to  Berlin  and  compel  Germany  to  give  up ; 
if  her  naval  establishment  is  broken  down,  the  Allies  can  form 
an  impassable  blockade  around  Germany  which  will  shut  off 
every  means  of  communication  with  the  outside  world,  even  the 
means  of  submarines,  and  compel  Germany  to  give  up. 

Coming  to  the  third  part  of  the  problem,  our  facilities  for  ac 
complishing  our  mission  against  the  opposing  forces  of  Germany, 
we  see  that  our  means  or  facilities  are  the  Army  and  Navy, 
backed  by  the  enormous  material  resources  of  the  United  States. 
Naturally  our  Army  would  work  with  the  Allied  armies  and  our 
Navy  with  the  Allied  navies. 

Coming  to  the  fourth  part,  the  decision,  we  see  that  it  amounts 
to  deciding  what  we,  or  rather  the  Allies,  are  to  do  with  our 
Army  and  Navy  against  the  German  Army  and  Navy,  and  also 
what  the  other  resources  of  the  Allies  can  do  against  Germany 's 
economic  establishment.  History  shows  that,  in  times  of  war,  the 
best  way  to  destroy  the  economic  establishment  of  an  enemy  is 


to  use  the  destructive  appliances  of  the  Army  and  Navy  which 
were  designed  and  developed  for  that  purpose.  Such  measures 
as  embargo  are  extremely  efficacious,  but  during  actual  war  they 
have  always  been  auxiliary  to  strategic  measures. 

In  order  to  make  a  wise  decision  as  to  what  are  the  necessary 
steps  to  fulfil  the  mission,  let  us  consult  our  only  guide  for 
the  future,  which  is  the  history  of  the  past.  If  we  do  this  we 
find  that  our  question  is  very  old,  indeed,  and  that  it  has  been 
answered  many  times.  The  answer  has  already  been,  "Battles; 
decisive  battles." 

WAES    HAVE   ALWAYS   BEEN    DECIDED    BY   BATTLES 

If  one  reads  history  reflectively  he  becomes  impressed  not 
only  with  the  enormous  effect  on  history  of  battles,  but  also  with 
the  small  number  of  them  that  were  individually  decisive,  even 
when  an  actual  victory  was  achieved  by  either  side. 

The  most  important  book  on  this  subject  is  "  Creasy 's  Fifteen 
Decisive  Battles  of  the  World."  In  his  preface,  Creasy  quotes 
Hallarn  as  saying  of  the  battle  of  Tours:  "It  may  justly  be 
reckoned  among  those  few  battles  of  which  a  contrary  event 
would  have  essentially  varied  the  drama  of  the  world  in  all 
subsequent  scenes." 

Each  one  of  the  battles  described  brought  about  a  decision 
that  was  momentous  to  mankind.  Each  ~battle  as  fought  by  the 
victor  was  the  carrying  out  of  a  distinct  and  brilliant  plan  pre 
viously  conceived  by  the  mind.  In  no  battle  did  the  victor 
fight  with  a  vague  intention;  in  no  battle  did  the  victor  fight 
unprepared;  in  no  battle  was  the  strategy  of  the  victor  faulty 
or  short-sighted ;  in  no  case  did  the  government  behind  the  vic 
torious  side  have  an  erroneous  or  incomplete  idea  of  the  military 
situation. 

SUPERIOR   DECISIVENESS   OF   NAVAL   BATTLES 

One  fact  stands  out  clearly,  and  that  is  the  fact  that  as  a 
general  rule  naval  battles  in  which  there  was  an  actual  victory 
were  much  more  decisive  of  future  results  than  similar  land 
battles.  This  is  probably  because  ships  that  are  disabled  or 
destroyed  cannot  be  repaired  so  quickly  as  buildings  and  other 
land  works  can ;  and  because  sailors  cannot  be  replaced  as  read 
ily  as  soldiers. 

The  importance  of  naval  battles  was  not  realized  until  Mahan 


668     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  BEAR-ADMIRAL 

made  us  realize  it.  Mahan  has  passed  away,  but  the  light  he 
lit  still  shines.  By  this  light  we  see  that  the  military  battle  of 
Waterloo  was  not  really  so  decisive  as  the  naval  battle  of 
Trafalgar,  although  Waterloo  was  the  culminating  battle  against 
Napoleon.  The  battle  of  Trafalgar  bore  the  same  relation  to  the 
battle  of  Waterloo  that  in  a  game  of  chess  the  move  which  pre 
cedes  the  announcement  of  "mate  in  (say)  four  moves"  has 
to  the  last  move  of  the  game,  which  gives  the  culminating  check 
mate.  When  one  player  in  a  game  of  chess  moves  his  piece  and 
announces,  ' '  Mate  in  four  moves, ' '  that  move  is  the  decisive  move 
in  the  game  and  the  subsequent  move  which  finally  check-mates 
the  adversary  is  not  the  decisive  move,  although  it  is  the  culmin 
ating  move.  Nelson's  victory  at  Trafalgar  decided  irrevocably 
that  Napoleon's  ambition  for  European  dominion  should  end  in 
failure,  because  it  established  the  British  navy  as  a  permanent 
unbalanced  force  against  him ;  the  only  unbalanced  force  among 
all  the  multifarious  forces  acting,  the  only  force  which  Napoleon 
was  powerless  against.  Trafalgar  announced  "mate  in  four 
moves"  to  Napoleon;  Waterloo  was  the  check-mate.  Even  if 
Napoleon  had  gained  Waterloo,  he  would  have  eventually  failed, 
for  the  reason  that  Great  Britain  could  prevent  that  free  move 
ment  of  warships  and  merchant  ships  upon  the  sea  without  which 
no  country  can  maintain  even  a  mediocre  place  in  the  family 
of  nations. 

Even  more  clearly  the  battle  between  the  Monitor  and  the 
Merrimac  on  March  9,  1862,  and  not  the  Battle  of  Gettysburg, 
was  the  decisive  battle  of  our  Civil  War.  Swinton  points  out 
in  his  "Twelve  Decisive  Battles  of  Our  War"  that  a  victory 
by  the  Merrimac  would  not  only  have  raised  the  existing  block 
ade  of  the  southern  coast,  but  would  have  given  the  South  the 
entire  control  of  Hampton  Koads  and  Chesapeake  Bay,  the 
mouths  of  the  James  and  Potomac  rivers  and  the  approaches 
from  the  south  and  east  to  Washington  and  Richmond,  and 
would  have  endangered  New  York  besides.  Concluding  a  long 
and  keen  discussion  of  the  results  that  would  surely  have  fol 
lowed  a  victory  by  the  Merrimac,  Swinton  says:  "The  Con 
federacy  would  have  received  the  alliance  of  one  or  both  of 
those  countries  (meaning  England  and  France)  and  the  Re 
public  would  have  been  forever  rent  in  twain." 

The  defeat  of  the  Merrimac  by  the  Monitor  decided  to  which 
side  victory  would  go,  for  the  simple  reason  that  it  made  it  im- 


REJECTION  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE       669 

possible  for  the  South  to  get  the  necessary  money,  munitions  and 
equipment  with  which  to  wage  the  war  successfully.  Even  if 
the  Confederacy  had  won  at  Gettysburg  it  would  eventually  have 
failed.  The  decision  as  to  which  side  would  win  was  given  on  the 
waters  of  Hampton  Roads  on  the  9th  of  March,  1862,  more  than 
a  year  before  Gettysburg  was  fought.  Unfortunately  this  fact 
was  not  realized  when  the  Monitor's  victory  was  won,  but  now 
that  we  see  that  if  it  had  been  realized  and  if  the  North  had 
merely  held  the  Southern  Army  in  check  thereafter  and  had 
devoted  its  major  attention  to  the  Navy  and  to  the  maintenance 
by  the  Navy  of  a  more  vigorous  blockade,  the  war  would  have 
been  decided  with  immeasurably  less  loss  of  time  and  blood 
and  suffering. 

COMPARATIVE   MERCIFULNESS   OF   NAVAL   BATTLES 

Our  war  with  Spain  was  one  of  the  most  decisive  wars  that 
was  ever  waged;  it  was  one  of  the  most  fruitful  in  permanent 
and  great  results,  and  yet  the  loss  of  time  and  blood  was  ex 
tremely  small — smaller  in  proportion  to  the  vast  and  permanent 
results  achieved  than  in  any  war  ever  waged  before.  This  was 
because  it  was  a  naval  war,  in  which  ships,  which  it  is  almost  im 
possible  to  replace,  were  the  targets  for  our  guns,  and  not  human 
beings  which  can  easily  be  replaced. 

A  like  truth  may  be  stated  about  the  war  between  Russia  and 
Japan.  Countless  thousands  were  slain  and  wounded  in  the 
land  battles  of  Manchuria,  with  little  or  no  results  that  we 
can  see,  but  the  naval  battle  of  Tsushima,  with  comparatively 
small  loss  of  life,  settled  the  whole  question  between  Japan  and 
Russia  in  one  historic  hour. 

If  the  only  way  to  win  this  war  is  to  fight  a  long  succession 
of  enormous  land  battles,  then  we  must  fight  them ;  but  it  may 
be  advantageous  to  see  if  an  alternative  method  less  bloody  but 
equally  decisive  can  be  devised.  This  idea  seems  worth  thinking 
about,  especially  if  we  actually  realize  that  the  most  decisive 
battles  of  history  were  not  the  most  bloody;  that  some  of  them, 
like  the  battle  of  Santiago  and  the  battle  between  the  Monitor 
and  the  Merrimac,  were  comparatively  bloodless,  and  that  the 
battle  of  Manila  did  not  cost  a  single  life  on  the  American  side. 


670     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

AEROPLANES    CAN   ATTACK   WEAK   POINTS 

Careful  reflection  about  the  decisive  battles  of  the  world  seems 
to  show  us  that  in  every  case  a  strong  attack  was  made  against  a 
point  that  was  comparatively  weak  and  yet  was  vital.  Noting 
this,  does  it  not  occur  to  us  at  once  that  Germany 's  weakest  point 
is  her  navy,  that  it  is  vital,  too,  and  that  therefore  we  should 
make  a  strong  attack  upon  it?  Her  naval  power  is  now  pro 
tected  behind  vast  mine  fields  just  as  the  garrison  of  a  fort  in 
the  olden  days  was  protected  behind  the  thick  walls  of  a  fort. 
But  the  walls  of  the  fort,  when  they  could  not  ~be  broken  through 
were  climbed  over  with  scaling  ladders,  and  the  German  mine, 
fields  can  likewise  be  flown  over  with  aeroplanes. 

Some  of  these  aeroplanes  may  be  seaplanes  that  rise  from 
North  Sea  waters,  manned  by  navy  men;  while  others  may 
spring  directly  from  the  land,  manned  by  army  men.  Coin- 
cidently  with  these  attacks,  great  divisions  of  army  warplanes 
may  attack  the  enemy's  bridges,  munition  depots  and  railroads 
behind  his  trenches  in  France,  and  thus  prevent  him  from 
concentrating  all  his  aerial  forces  in  defense  of  Kiel  and  Wil- 
helmshaven. 

STRATEGIC   VALUE   OF   NEW   APPLIANCES 

It  may  be  objected  that  the  adoption  of  this  suggestion  would 
involve  attaching  undue  importance  to  a  new  mechanical  ap 
pliance.  In  answer  it  may  be  pointed  out  that  all  weapons 
are  mechanical  appliances,  and  that  some  of  the  greatest  suc 
cesses  in  war  have  been  gained  by  utilizing  new  mechanical 
appliances.  In  fact,  the  principal  factors  in  whatever  successes 
the  Germans  have  attained  have  been  the  new  mortars  with 
which  they  battered  in  the  tops  of  the  Belgian  forts,  their  novel 
appliances  for  trench  fighting,  and  their  unexpectedly  efficient 
submarines. 

It  may  also  be  pointed  out  that  the  aeroplane  has  established 
itself  as  a  mechanical  appliance  of  great  reliability,  that  it  can 
carry  large  destructive  forces  to  strategic  points  more  quickly 
than  any  other  appliance  can,  that  a  squadron  of  Caproni  aero 
planes  recently  made  a  flight  of  875  miles  without  stopping,  that 
the  distance  from  England  to  Kiel  and  Wilhelmshaven  is  only 
375  miles  and  275  miles  respectively,  and  that  the  distances  to 
those  places  from  Northeastern  France  are  only  30  miles  greater. 


It  may  be  at  the  present  moment  that  there  are  no  aeroplanes 
that  are  able  to  carry  full-sized  torpedoes  from  England  to 
Kiel,  discharge  the  torpedoes  and  return  to  England,  but  there 
are  aeroplanes  in  existence  that  fall  short  of  such  an  ability  by 
only  a  small  percentage.  Certainly,  therefore,  if  no  such  aero 
planes  do  exist,  they  can  be  made  to  exist,  and  I  am  informed  that 
they  can,  by  one  of  the  most  competent  aeronautical  engineers  in 
the  world. 

It  is  instructive  to  recall  the  fact  that  of  all  the  many  factors 
that  decided  the  result  of  the  Russian-Japanese  War  the  most 
important  single  factor  was  a  new  invention,  the  naval  tele 
scope  sight — because  it  was  the  decisive  Japanese  victory  at  the 
naval  battle  of  Tsushima  that  decided  the  outcome  of  the  war  by 
ruining  every  chance  the  Russians  had  of  conquering  Japan; 
because  it  was  the  enormous  superiority  in  gunnery  of  the 
Japanese  that  gave  the  Japanese  the  victory,  and  because  the 
enormous  superiority  in  gunnery  of  the  Japanese  was  due  en 
tirely  to  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  guns  were  perfectly  equipped 
with  telescope  sights,  while  the  Russian  guns  were  not. 

This  same  naval  telescope  sight  is  the  means  with  which  every 
gun  in  every  Allied  vessel,  no  matter  how  large  or  how  small, 
is  directed  against  the  submarine.  It  is  the  most  efficient  weapon 
yet  brought  to  bear  against  the  submarine. 

THE   GERMAN    NAVY    CAN    BE   SMASHED 

Much  hope  is  felt  by  the  Allies  now  because  of  the  apparent 
loss  of  effectiveness  of  the  submarine  attacks.  Whether  or  not 
the  submarine  has  been  beaten,  let  us  realize  that  the  submarine 
is  only  one  of  many  naval  weapons,  and  that  naval  strategy 
recognizes  the  fact  that  so  long  as  the  enemy's  fleet  exists  as  a 
fighting  force,  so  long  as  it  remains  what  we  call  "a  fleet  in 
being,"  it  constitutes  a  continuing  menace,  from  which  an  at 
tack  of  some  kind  may  be  expected  at  any  time.  For  this  rea 
son,  no  mere  subsidence  of  submarine  activities  should  blind  us 
to  a  desirability  of  sinking  or  disabling  the  German  fleet. 

Germany's  entire  fleet  is  concentrated  in  the  region  of  Kiel 
and  Wilhelmshaven.  All  her  naval  eggs  are  in  one  basket,  and 
those  eggs  are  vitally  essential  to  her  existence  as  a  nation.  It 
is  my  profound  conviction  that  we  can  smash  those  eggs  by 
torpedoplane  and  air-bomb  attacks,  if  we  prepare  and  deliver 
them  on  a  scale  sufficiently  great. 


672     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

If  we  do  this,  we  shall  win  the  latest  decisive  battle  of  the 
world  and  take  the  final  necessary  step  to  victory  with  the 
minimum  expenditure  of  money  and  time  and  human  life. 

Respectfully, 

(Signed)  BRADLEY  A.  FISKE. 

For  this  letter  I  received  such  a  severe  written  repri 
mand  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  that  I  decided  to 
desist  for  a  while  from  further  efforts  to  advance  the  de 
velopment  of  aeronautics. 

Jan.  11.  ...  I  went  to  Phila.  Navy  Yard  and  was  very  politely 
received  by  everybody.  Naval  Constructor  Coburn,  in  charge 
of  New  Aeronautic  construction  factory  there,  said  my  scheme 
for  launching  torpedoes  was  thoroughly  practicable  as  to  the 
flying  boats  building  there. 

Jan.  16.  "Went  to  luncheon  of  Am.  Defense  Society  at 
Union  League  Club.  Sat  at  table  of  6,  with  Col.  Roosevelt,  who 
was  guest  of  honor,  and  had  just  accepted  Hon.  Presidency  of 
Society. 

Colonel  Roosevelt  made  a  brief  speech,  in  which  he 
said,  in  part,  as  follows : 

Now,  the  next  thing  I  am  going  to  say — of  course,  I  take 
it  for  granted  that  there  will  be  no  report  made  here  that  I  do 
not  see —  want  to  say  a  word  of  Admiral  Fiske,  and  I  want  not 
to  hurt  Admiral  Fiske  more  than  he  has  been  hurt  by  his  own 
courage  and  loyalty  to  the  country.  .  .  . 

The  Admiral  is,  with  the  sole  exception  of  General  Wood, 
the  man  who  has  suffered  most  from  daring  to  tell  the  truth 
about  our  condition.  Over  three  years  ago,  the  Admiral  made 
the  first  big  move  for  improving  the  condition  of  the  Navy  by 
telling  the  truth  about  the  Navy,  and  was  punished  mercilessly 
because  he  did  tell  the  truth.  Every  American  owes  a  real  and 
great  debt  to  the  Admiral.  He  rendered  a  substantial,  affirma 
tive  service  to  the  people  of  the  United  States  at  great  personal 
cost.  I  am  glad  to  have  a  chance  to  pay  a  tribute  to  him  in  his 
presence,  which  I  pay  to  Leonard  Wood  in  his  absence. 

Jan.  17.  I  mailed  to  Sec.  Nav.  (Office  Nav.  Int.)  an  article 
asked  for  by  The  Independent  on  "What  We  Are  Fighting 
For" — and  asked  permission  to  publish  it.  ...  I  had  shown 


REJECTION  OF  THE  TOKPEDOPLANE       673 

it  to  editor,  Hamilton  Holt,  and  he  said  he  liked  it  very  much. 

Later,  the  permission  was  refused. 

Jan.  19.  ...  The  men  now  in  authority  are  trying  to  do  things 
Julius  Ccesar  could  not  do  in  the  time  available. 

Jan.  22.  Every  paper  and  every  speaker  is  shouting  "speed 
up."  We  have  speeded  up  so  much  already  that  we  are  like  a 
crowd  of  people,  "speeding  up"  to  get  out  of  a  theatre;  we 
are  getting  in  each  other's  way. 

Jan.  25.  Received  from  Col.  Roosevelt  a  copy  of  his  book 
"Americanism  &  Preparedness,"  in  which  he  does  me  the  great 
honor  to  praise  me  several  times.  On  the  fly  leaf  is  written  ' '  To 
Rear  Admiral  Bradley  A.  Fiske,  with  the  gratitude  and  admira 
tion  of  Theodore  Roosevelt." 

Jan.  26.  Sent  a  letter  to  Sec.  Nav.  asking  the  Army  be  re 
quested  to  try  my  18  inch  dummy  torpedo  from  Caproni  biplane, 
and  let  Navy  observe  the  results. 

This  letter  was  simply  following  up  my  letter  of  Sep 
tember  9,  1917.  It  read  as  follows : 

128  West  59th  Street, 
New  York,  Jan.  26,  1918. 
From  Rear  Admiral  B.  A.  Fiske,  Retired, 
To  The  Secretary  of  the  Navy  (Divisions  of  Operations). 

Subject  -.—POWERFUL  TORPEDOPLANES 
Reference: — Rear  Admiral  Fiske 's  letter  dated  September  9th, 
1917. 

1.  In  accordance  with  an  oral  conversation  held  with  the  Chief 
of  Naval  Operations  in  his  office  on  January  24,  I  called  on  the 
Chief  Signal  Officer  of  the  Army.     He  was  absent;  but  I  had 
a  satisfactory  conversation  with  Colonel  Deeds,  who  is  in  charge 
of  the  Equipment  Division  of  the  Signal  Office. 

2.  I  told  Colonel  Deeds  that  I  had  sent  a  dummy  18"  torpedo, 
made   of  steel,   with   appropriate   launching   gear   to   Langley 
Field  last  Autumn  ready  for  dropping  from  the  Caproni  tri- 
plane — which  was  wrecked  later;  that  the  dummy  torpedo  and 
launching  gear  were  ready  to  be  tried  as  soon  as  another  large 
aeroplane  was  available ;  and  that  I  was  desirous  of  ascertaining 
whether  the  Army  could  provide  such  an  Aeroplane.     I  also  said 
that  I  had  received  the  impression  from  the  Chief  of  Naval  Op 
erations  that  the  Navy  would  like  to   have  a  trial  made  of 


674     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

launching  the  18"  dummy  torpedo  from  such  an  aeroplane,  if 
such  a  trial  could  be  conveniently  brought  about. 

3.  Colonel  Deeds  said  that  a  large  Caproni  biplane  was  on 
its  way  to  the  United  States;  that  it  would  be  set  up  at  the 
Aviation  Field  at  Mineola,  L.  I.,  N.  Y. ;  and  that  he  thought 
it  would  be  ready  to  fly  in  about  eight  (8)  weeks. 

4.  He   also  said  that  he  would  be  very   glad  to  have  the 
Caproni  biplane  used  to  try  the  experiment ;  and  that  he  would 
either  lend  the  biplane  to  the  navy,  or  else  would  have  the  ex 
periment  made  by  army  aviators  accustomed  to  the  machine,  & 
let  the  navy  make  such  observations  of  the  results  as  the  Sec 
retary  of  the  Navy  might  direct. 

5.  I  therefore  respectfully  request  that  the  Navy  Department 
take  such  steps  towards  such  a  trial  as  the  Secretary  may  deem 
best.     If  I  may  be  permitted  to  make  a  suggestion,  I  would 
suggest  that  the  Army  be  asked  to  conduct  the  trial  along  such 
lines  as  the  navy  may  desire,  and  that  navy  officers  observe 
whatever  results  occur.  B.  A.  FISKE. 

Jan.  30.  ...  Godfrey  L.  Cabot  came  up  to  my  apartment, 
and  we  discussed  a  paper  I  had  written  to  Bu.  Ordnance,  about 
''Comparative  Effectiveness  of  Torpedoplanes  and  Bomb  Drop 
ping  Aeroplanes."  This  paper  proved  by  mathematics  and  the 
principles  of  Gunnery  that  torpedoplanes  are  more  accurate  and 
destructive. 

Feb.  5.  Eeceived  back  from  Washington  the  Ms.  that  I  sent, 
on  "What  We  Are  Fighting  For"  (requested  by  Liberty  Loan 
Committee) — not  giving  permission  to  publish  it! 

Feb.  6.  Submitted  preface  for  second  edition  of  my  book 
to  Scribners,  and  Foreword  for  ' '  Sea  Power  &  Freedom, ' '  asked 
for  by  the  Putnams. 

Feb.  8.  ...  Theodore  Roosevelt  is  declared  in  "Serious  con 
dition."  "Flying"  (American)  is  out  with  big  front  page 
illustration  showing  Kaiser  falling  off  3-legged  stool,  because 
one  leg  (Navy)  is  being  torpedoplaned.  This  is  to  illustrate  my 
argument  made  in  letter  to  Hawley,  of  December  23. 

Feb.  9.  Roosevelt  improving.  I  sent  in  to  Scribners  my 
preface  for  the  second  edition  of  "The  Navy  as  a  Fighting  Ma 
chine.  ' ' 

Feb.  13.  I  was  elected  President  of  the  Army  and  Navy  Club 
of  New  York  today. 


REJECTION  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE     675 

Feb.  15.  Married  36  years  ago  today !  Called  on  Mr.  H.  C. 
Ford  of  Ford  Marine  Instrument  Co.,  and  suggested  that  he 
leave  out  of  new  model  horizometer  all  additions  outside  of  angle 
measurement,  and  simply  transmit  to  the  plotting  room  the  angle 
—in  either  vertical  or  horizontal  plane.  Mr.  Ford  was  de 
lighted — very  much  so,  and  said  he  would  take  up  the  scheme 
at  once.  At  last  I  see  a  reason  to  expect  that  the  plan  I  have 
urged  ever  since  I  wrote  "Courage  and  Prudence"  in  1907  and 
suggested  the  "plotting  room"  will  be  carried  out. 

Feb.  20.  Bolsheviki  govt.  has  made  peace  with  Germany 
paying  4  billion  dollars,  ceding  certain  Baltic  provinces,  etc! 
The  pacifistic  attitude  of  the  Bolsheviki,  and  the  licking  they  are 
therefore  receiving,  is  a  lesson  for  our  pacifists,  and  is  the  kind 
of  a  result  that  Army  and  Navy  officers  have  always  predicted 
for  pacifistic  nations,  that  leave  their  money  out  on  the  counter, 
without  any  protection. 

Feb.  21.  Germany  apparently  is  going  to  conquer  Russia. 
Germany  commands  "air"  near  American  lines!!!  I  feared 
this  would  occur ;  in  fact  I  knew  that  our  inaction  would  cause 
just  such  a  situation. 

Feb.  25.  The  N.  Y.  Times  has  an  editorial  lauding  Secre 
tary  Daniels.  Good:  but  if  I  had  not  brought  about  certain 
measures  that  he  opposed  with  all  the  force  of  his  authority,  he 
would  now  be  more  condemned  by  the  public  than  Sec.  War  Alger 
was  in  Spanish  War. 

Mar.  8.  Letter  from  Major  (Dr.)  H.  C.  Coe  in  London  says 
Vice  Admiral  Sims,  in  a  conversation  with  him,  gave  me  "all 
the  credit  for  putting  the  U.  S.  Navy  on  the  basis  such  as  we 
have  today,"  etc. 

On  May  21  I  received  the  following  letter  from  Secre 
tary  Daniels  in  answer  to  my  letter  of  January  26,  1918. 
It  killed  all  my  hopes  of  utilizing  the  torpedoplane  in  the 
war: 


676     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

COPY 

Address  reply  to  6-EB 

THE  SECRETARY  OF  THE  NAVY 
And  refer  to  initials 
and  No. 

Op.  Air—  WSB 

0146-153 

NAVY  DEPARTMENT 
Washington 

May  20,  1918. 

From :     Secretary  of  the  Navy. 
To:         Rear  Admiral  B.  A.  Fiske  (Retired) 
SUBJECT:     Powerful  Torpedoplanes. 
Reference :     (a)  Your  letter  dated  January  26,  1918. 

1.  The  proposed  suggestion  by  you  of  launching  torpedoes 
from  aircraft  has  been  studied  in  connection  with  experiments 
which  have  been  carried  on  by  the  allied  powers,  and  the  follow 
ing  results  and  decisions  have  been  determined : 

(a)  From  experiments  it  has  been  proved  that  torpedoes  can 
be  launched  from  aircraft.     This  must  be  done,  however, 
at  an  altitude  not  in  excess  of  fifteen  feet.    At  this  alti 
tude  one  thing  must  be  guarded  against,  namely,  the  re 
bounding  of  the  torpedoes  which  sometimes  strike  the  tail 
of  the  aircraft  resulting  in  a  crash. 

(b)  The  feasibility  of  this   form  of  attack  in  the  face  of 
offensive  gun  fire  is  doubted,  for  even  should  the  air 
craft  escape,  the  aim  would  seldom  be  accurate  due  to 
confusion  of  the  operators. 

(c)  As  the  enemy's  ships  are  not  operating  on  the  high  seas 
the  only  way  to  reach  them  would  be  to  attack  them  at 
their  bases.     These  bases  are  located  well  within  defenses, 
and  heavy  aircraft  capable  of  carrying  torpedoes  would 
not  be  able  to  penetrate  the  enemy's  defenses  guarding 
these  bases.     Hence,  it  is  not  deemed  practicable  to  at 
tempt  such  offensive  operations. 

(d)  Experiments  along  this  line  have  already  been  tried  and 
discarded  by  the  Allied  Powers  in  Europe  and  the  possi 
bility  of  obtaining  satisfactory  results  from  the  proposed 
scheme  is  so  slight  as  not  to  warrant  the  expenditure  of 
the  time  and  talent  required  for  its  development. 

(Signed)  JOSEPHUS  DANIELS. 


CHAPTEE  XLV 

THE   TRIUMPH   OF   THE   TORPEDOPLANE,   FUTURE   GLORY 
OF   AMERICA,   GOLD   MEDAL 


O 


N  June  15  I  received  the  following  letter  from  the 
president  of  the  Aero  Club  of  America: 

THE  AERO  CLUB  OF  AMERICA 
297  Madison  Avenue 


New  York,  June  13,  1918.  . 
Rear  Admiral  Bradley  A.  Fiske,  U.S.N., 
128  West  59th  Street, 
New  York  City. 
My  dear  Admiral  Fiske : 

Permit  me  to  take  advantage  of  the  occasion  of  your  64th 
birthday  to  extend  my  cordial  congratulations,  and  at  the  same 
time,  to  thank  you,  on  behalf  of  the  Aero  Club  of  America,  for 
the  assistance  you  have  given  to  naval  and  military  aeronautics. 

You  have  done  more  for  these  causes  than  any  other  man 
in  the  United  States.  You  were  the  first  man  in  the  world  to 
point  out  the  possibilities  of  the  aeroplane  for  major  operations ; 
and  you  have  persistently  called  attention  to  them  since  1911. 
You  were  the  first  man,  after  we  entered  the  war,  to  publicly 
urge  sending  a  large  aeroplane  force  to  Europe;  and  your  en 
dorsement,  as  a  strategist,  of  the  efforts  of  this  Club  to  secure 
large  appropriations  for  aeronautics,  was  a  potent  force  with 
Congress. 

Your  official  testimony  before  Congress  on  December  17,  1914, 
and  on  March  24,  1916,  showed  a  clearer  vision  of  the  necessity 
for  immediately  developing  aeronautics  and  strongly  encouraging 
aeronautic  manufacturers,  than  any  other  official  showed.  Un 
fortunately,  your  wise  recommendations  were  not  heeded  until 
after  we  had  actually  entered  the  war.  If  they  had  been  acted 
on  when  you  made  them,  the  United  States  would  have  been  able 
to  send  an  overwhelming  force  of  aeroplanes  to  the  assistance 

677 


678     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIKAL 

of  the  Allies  immediately  after  we  entered  the  war,  and  German 
submarines  would  not  now  be  defying  our  navy  on  our  own 
coast. 

Navy  officers  tell  me  that  you  have  done  more  to  strengthen 
the  navy  than  any  other  man  in  our  history,  and  that  you  did 
it  mainly  (though  not  wholly)  by  your  electrical  inventions  and 
gunnery  inventions,  and  by  establishing  the  general  staff  meth 
ods,  by  which  our  navy  is  now  handled.  I  know,  of  my  own 
knowledge,  that  you  did  more  than  anyone  else  to  bring  about 
its  use  of  aeroplanes  and  dirigibles ;  and  I  believe  that,  since  the 
first  of  August,  1914,  you  have  shown  a  clearer  understanding 
of  the  situation  as  a  whole,  and  of  the  measures  we  ought  to 
take,  to  secure  victory,  than  any  other  man  in  the  United  States. 

The  navy  appreciates  your  work,  as  it  has  shown  by  electing 
you  President  of  the  Naval  Institute  seven  times  in  succession. 
Predicting  that  the  country  also  will  appreciate  your  work,  as 
soon  as  the  country  learns  to  understand  it,  I  am  ever 

Faithfully  yours, 

(Signed)  ALAN  R.  HAWLEY, 
President,  Aero  Club  of  America. 

After  the  United  States  had  entered  into  the  war  a 
period  of  great  confusion  and  hurry  ensued,  in  which 
many  hundreds  of  millions  of  money  were  appropriated 
by  Congress,  with  the  cordial  approval  of  the  people,  in 
a  determined  endeavor  to  save  the  world  from  the  catas 
trophe  which  their  own  short-sightedness  threatened  to 
create.  Both  political  parties  rallied  to  the  support  of 
the  Government,  men  occupying  the  most  important  and 
lucrative  positions  in  business  and  professional  life  gave 
their  services  for  nominal  salaries,  and  enormous  or 
ganizations  for  manufacturing  supplies  of  all  kinds  and 
transporting  them  to  Europe  soon  resulted.  After  the 
nation  had  realized  its  folly  and  the  possible  fruits,  the 
inborn  genius  of  the  American  asserted  itself.  The  ex 
pense  involved  was  tremendous,  and  so  was  the  waste; 
but  the  wastage  was  due  not  to  inefficiency  then,  but  to 
short-sightedness  before. 

Because  aeronautics  was  a  new  art  compared  with  the 
other  arts  brought  into  requisition,  such  as  the  arts  of 


TRIUMPH  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE       679 

gun-building  and  ship  construction,  less  useful  work  in 
ending  the  war  was  done  by  aeronautics  on  the  part  of 
America,  than  by  the  other  agencies.  I  lost  flesh  that  I 
could  not  spare  in  fruitless  exasperation,  and  in  imagin 
ing  what  would  have  happened  if  the  earnest  recom 
mendations  which  I  made  when  I  testified  before  the 
naval  committee  on  March  24,  1916,  had  been  f-ollowed. 
It  seemed  to  me  that  if  they  had  been  followed,  we  could 
have  entered  the  war  ready  to  furnish  immediate  aero 
nautical  aid;  and  I  said  to  myse-lf  that,  if  my  work  in 
establishing  the  Division  of  Aeronautics  when  I  was  aid 
for  operations  had  been  continued,  if,  in  fact,  the  Divi 
sion  of  Aeronautics  had  not  been  actually  abolished,  we 
could  have  started  flotillas  of  bombing-machines  and  tor- 
pedoplanes  across  the  ocean  on  April  7,  1917.  In  fact, 
I  could  hardly  avoid  the  conviction  that,  if  we  had  gone 
ahead  as  we  were  going  aeronautically  when  I  left  office 
on  May  11,  1915,  Germany  would  have  known  it,  and 
would  not  then  have  been  such  a  fool  as  to  adopt  her 
policy  of  ruthless  submarine  warfare  in  defiance  of  the 
repeated  warnings  of  the  United  States.  Germany  went 
into  the  war  because  she  thought  she  saw  an  oppor 
tunity;  and  she  defied  the  United  States  because  she 
thought  the  United  States  would  not  fight,  and  could  not 
fight  effectively  if  she  would.  What  Germany  failed  to 
realize  was  that  the  guiding  genius  of  the  American  peo 
ple  was  not  William  J.  Bryan,  but  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

During  the  months  of  June  and  July  I  made  occasional 
trips  to  Washington  and  to  the  aircraft  factory  in  Phila 
delphia  in  the  endeavor  to  get  permission  to  have  one  of 
the  large  flying-boats  then  under  construction,  fitted  as 
an  experimental  torpedoplane.  I  also  worked  with  the 
Aero  Club  in  their  endeavors  to  have  transatlantic  flight 
attempted.  On  July  19  I  had  one  of  the  joyful  surprises 
of  my  life.  Says  my  diary: 

July  19.  I  was  in  Washington  yesterday.  I  saw  a  dispatch 
from  Admiral  Sims,  dated  July  10,  saying  that  150  seaplanes, 


680     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAR-ADMIEAL 

fitted  to  carry  and  launch  1000  Ib.  torpedoes  (torpedoplanes) 

had  been  ordered  by  the  British  Admiralty!  Captain  

showed  me  the  telegram,  and  naval  constructor  Hunsacker  spoke 
of  it  to  me  afterwards!  Isn't  it  distressing  that  the  British 
Navy  should  do  this,  when  our  Navy  Department  has  not  only 
done  nothing  to  develop  the  torpedoplane,  but  actually  and  af 
firmatively  rejected  it,  in  a  letter  to  me  signed  by  the  Secretary 
of  the  Navy,  dated  May  20,  1918 !  My  case  is  worse  than  Gen 
eral  Wood's. 

July  20.  ...  nominations  are  out  for  officers  of  Naval  In 
stitute.  I  am  the  only  nominee  for  president ;  and  yet  the  rules 
say  the  Board  of  Control  must  nominate  three. 

Aug.  1.  Germany  seems  tired  out.  Crisis  seems  to  have  been 
her  recent  defeats  in  the  latter  part  of  July. 

From  this  time  forward  German  retreats  followed 
in  rapid  succession.  On  November  11  an  armistice  was 
signed,  and  the  war  virtually  ended. 

This  caused  great  rejoicing  among  all  the  Allied  na 
tions  ;  but  it  brought  me  face  to  face  with  the  fact  that  I 
had  not  been  officially  employed  during  the  entire  war, 
though  I  had  made  official  application  for  duty,  and  many 
retired  rear-admirals  older  than  I  had  been  employed, 
who  had  not  had  as  complete  and  varied  experience  as  I. 
No  reason  (I  mean,  of  course,  no  good  reason)  for  not 
employing  me  occurred  to  me;  for  I  had  served  effi 
ciently  in  all  the  grades  of  the  navy,  both  in  peace  and  in 
war,  had  successfully  filled  the  highest  position  a  navy 
officer  can  fill,  had  twice  'been  member  of  the  General 
Board,  had  established  the  system  under  which  the  Navy 
Department  was  handled  throughout  the  war,  and  had 
invented  more  successful  naval  and  military  appliances 
than  any  other  man  in  the  world.  I  had  not  even 
been  put  on  the  Navy  Consulting  Board,  which  had 
been  established  for  the  purpose  of  developing  inven 
tions,  and  which  I  myself  had  suggested  for  the  Secre 
tary  !  Several  of  its  members  told  me  that  I  ought  to  be 
on  the  board;  in  fact,  the  head  of  it.  At  the  risk  of 
appearing  conceited,  but  in  order  to  make  my  point 
clear,  I  beg  leave  to  state  that  on  the  occasion  of  a 


Courtesy  of  Illustrated  London  News  &  R.  F.  A. 

Before  it  enters  the  water 


Courtesy  oi  Illustrated  London  News  &  R.  F.  A. 

The  torpedo  hitting  the  water  with  the  torpedoplane  out  of  danger  from   the  splash 
A   TORPEDO   BEING  LAUNCHED   FROM   A   TORPEDOPLAXE 


TRIUMPH  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE       681 

large  celebration  at  Elizabethport,  New  Jersey,  on  July 
6,  1918,  when  the  first  large  Handley-Page  machine  was 
flown,  I  mistakenly  entered  a  room  in  which  I  found  a 
number  of  men  seated  at  a  long  table.  No  sooner  had  I 
entered  than  these  men  applauded,  and  the  chairman 
rose  and  asked  me  to  sit  by  him,  and  then  to  "make  a 
few  remarks."  To  my  amazement  I  found  that  I  had 
unwittingly  intruded  on  a  conference  of  the  Navy  Con 
sulting  Board. 

August  2.  Called  on  Morgan  Sinister,  president  Century 
Company.  We  agreed  orally  that  the  Century  Company  will 
publish  my  book  at  a  time  to  be  agreed  on  later. 

The  book  referred  to  is  this  one. 

During  the  months  of  June,  July,  and  August,  German 
submarines  off  the  coast  of  the  United  States  sank  many 
vessels,  one  of  which  was  the  United  States  armored 
cruiser  San  Diego.  The  German  submarines  seemed 
to  do  as  they  pleased,  for  the  only  effective  defense 
against  them,  considering  the  great  area  over  which  they 
worked,  would  have  been  aeroplanes,  and  we  had  almost 
no  aeroplanes  ready,  though  many  were  now  under  con 
struction.  The  last  sinking  occurred  about  August  27. 
I  believe.  It  seems  probable  that  all  German  submarines 
were  called  home  shortly  after  this.  Possibly,  it  was  that 
they  might  take  part  in  a  naval  offensive ;  but  this  naval 
offensive  never  took  place,  because  the  German  fleet 
mutinied.  Shortly  after  this  mutiny  Germany  declared 
her  willingness  to  sign  an  armistice.  Whether  the  will 
ingness  to  sign  the  armistice  was  a  direct  effect  of  the 
mutiny  I  do  not,  of  course,  know;  but  it  is  obvious  that 
it  would  have  been  foolish  for  Germany  to  continue  the 
war  after  her  fleet  had  mutinied.  As  I  pointed  out  in  my 
letter  to  the  president  of  the  Aero  Club,  dated  December 
23,  1917,  the  government  of  every  maritime  nation  is  like 
a  three-legged  stool,  in  that  it  rests  on  three  supports, 
any  one  of  which  being  knocked  out,  the  structure  must 
come  down.  In  the  case  of  a  maritime  nation,  these  sup- 


682     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

ports  are  the  economic  establishment,  the  army,  and  the 
navy. 

The  noblest  man  this  country  has  produced  since  Wash 
ington,  died  on  January  6, 1919.  It  will  be  one  of  the  con 
solations  of  my  declining  days  that  during  the  last  year 
of  his  life  Theodore  Roosevelt  honored  me  several  times 
with  expressions  of  his  esteem.  I  owe  to  him  more  than 
to  any  other  man  except  my  father  whatever  desires  I 
have  ever  had  to  live  a  manly  life,  and  whatever  small 
measure  of  success  I  may  have  had  in  living  it.  In  a 
sordid  generation  Theodore  Roosevelt  shone  like  a  star 
of  magnanimity  and  lofty  aspiration. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1918,  it  became  known  that  the 
British  fleet  had  realized  for  a  year  the  danger  of  torpe- 
doplane  attacks  upon  it,  and  that  the  navy  had  taken 
measures  on  a  tremendous  scale  for  making  just  such  tor- 
pedoplane  and  bombing  attacks  on  Kiel  and  Wilhelms- 
haven  as  I  had  urged  in  June,  1917,  and  afterwards. 

It  became  known  also  that,  after  trying  various  modi 
fications,  the  British  had  finally  adopted  the  apparatus 
and  the  method  of  using  it  that  were  specifically  illus 
trated  and  described  in  my  patent,  so  that  no  "  develop 
ing"  had  been  required.  It  is  extremely  rare  that  an  in 
vention  that  is  really  new,  is  ' '  right  the  first  time. ' '  My 
stadimeter  and  torpedoplane  were  virtually  so. 

In  March,  1918,  Henry  Woodhouse  wrote  an  article  for 
the  United  States  Naval  Institute  called  "The  Torpedo- 
plane."  It  was  accepted  by  the  Board  of  Control,  but 
they  had  to  refer  it  to  the  Navy  Department  for  permis 
sion  to  publish.  As  there  was  some  delay  in  passing  the 
censor's  office,  I  went  to  Washington  and  represented  the 
matter  to  Assistant-Secretary  Roosevelt,  then  Acting 
Secretary.  As  Mr.  Roosevelt  had  been  continuously  do 
ing  all  he  could  to  advance  the  cause  of  aeronautics,  in 
cluding  the  torpedoplane,  and  as  there  was  nothing  in  the 
article  which  could  give  any  information  to  any  foreign 
government,  Mr.  Roosevelt  finally  approved  the  publica 
tion  of  the  article  with  a  few  minor  omissions.  The  ar- 


tide  appeared  in  the  May  number  of  the  Institute  Pro 
ceedings  and  disclosed  the  fact  that  the  Italians,  Ger 
mans,  and  British  had  been  experimenting  with  the  tor- 
pedoplane  since  1914.  The  successes  of  the  Germans  and 
British  in  sinking  vessels  were  mentioned,  and  the  follow 
ing  statements  from  English  papers  were  quoted : 

The  mystery  aeroplanes  of  the  British  Navy,  which  during  the 
fighting  were  one  of  its  most  jealously  guarded  secrets,  have 
been  specially  described  by  an  expert  who  has  had  full  op 
portunities  for  studying  the  craft. 

The  mystery  aeroplane  was  designed  to  do  from  the  air  more 
effectively  and  more  swiftly  the  work  formerly  allotted  to  our 
torpedo-boats.  The  eriemy  had  devised  such  successful  pro 
tection  of  harbors  and  ships  against  our  torpedo-boats  and  sub 
marines  that  it  was  only  with  the  gravest  risk  that  we  could 
approach  within  30  miles  of  Kiel  and  other  German  fortified 
ports.  But  for  the  newest  peril  the  enemy  had  no  reply. 

The  news  of  our  discovery  of  a  means  of  attack  that  was 
immune  from  mine  dangers  and  too  swift  in  its  operation  to  be 
held  off  by  gunfire  reached  the  ears  of  the  enemy,  and  it  is  be 
lieved,  in  one  quarter  at  least,  to  have  helped  the  Huns  to  the  de 
cision  of  surrender. 

Among  the  many  new  devices  which  the  armistice  prevented 
the  Royal  Air  Force  from  putting  into  use  against  the  enemy 
was  the  torpedo-aeroplane.  It  is  considered  to  be  of  even  greater 
potential  value  than  the  submarine,  and  would  doubtless  have 
proved  astonishingly  efficient.  The  enemy  has  good  reason  to 
be  thankful  for  having  escaped  this  new  offensive  weapon,  which 
was  ready  for  active  service  only  a  little  while  before  the  cessa 
tion  of  hostilities.  The  torpedo-aeroplane  is  a  development  of 
the  torpedo-carriers,  which  were  first  successfully  employed  in 
action  by  the  R.  N.  A.  S.  at  the  Dardanelles  in  1915,  and  were 
subsequently  used  against  us  by  the  Germans  in  1917,  when  they 
were  thus  enabled  to  sink  three  of  our  merchant  ships  off  the 
South-East  Coast.  The  torpedo  carried  by  torpedo-aeroplanes 
is  of  a  small  size  as  modern  torpedoes  go,  and  weighs  half  a 
ton. 

Had  riot  hostilities  ceased  so  suddenly,  these  machines  would 
have  operated  effectively  against  Kiel  harbor  and  the  German 
warships  in  their  lair.  The  efficacy  of  the  weapons  will  be  real- 


684     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

ized  when  the  operation  is  explained.  One  of  these  mystery 
aeroplanes,  espying  its  enemy,  makes  a  sudden  dive  from  the 
clouds  at  150  miles  an  hour,  levels  out  at  50  feet  above  the 
surface,  discharges  a  torpedo  directly  at  the  enemy  ship  at  the 
right  moment,  after  which  the  pilot  pulls  back  his  joy-stick  and 
disappears  into  the  clouds  as  suddenly  as  he  appeared.  The 
operation  is  so  swift  that  the  enemy  has  little  chance  of  train 
ing  a  gun  on  the  assailant.  In  one  of  these  attacks  a  British 
airman  torpedoed  and  sank  a  Turkish  troopship  containing 
3000  troops. 

When  the  German  fleet  surrendered,  an  aeroplane  "mother- 
ship"  with  20  of  these  machines  in  its  bosom  met  the  Huns  50 
miles  out  at  sea,  and  had  any  tricks  been  tried  it  would  have 
been  simple  work  for  a  score  of  mystery  aeroplanes  to  have 
leapt  into  the  air  and  torpedoed  the  best  part  of  the  ships.  This 
mystery  or  "Cuckoo"  aeroplane — so  called  because  of  its  weak 
ness  for  laying  eggs  in  other  people's  nests — is  one  further 
testimony  to  British  engineering  ability  and  resourcefulness  of 
our  navy. 

Mr.  Woodhouse's  article  aroused  considerable  atten 
tion  and  caused  many  comments  in  the  public  press. 
Regret  was  expressed,  and  amazement  too,  that  our  Navy 
Department  had  permitted  foreign  governments  exclu 
sively  to  bring  into  practical  use  an  invention  so  unmistak 
ably  American.  It  was  pointed  out  that,  if  my  recommen 
dations  had  been  followed  the  United  States  could  have 
had '  *  flotillas  of  torpedoplanes ' '  ready  when  the  war  broke 
out,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  not  one  American  torpedo- 
plane  existed. 

Stress  was  laid  on  the  fact,  also,  that  the  Navy  De 
partment  had  had  placed  at  its  disposal  almost  un 
limited  resources,  money  and  facilities  for  trying  new 
inventions ;  that  it  bad  spent  great  sums  in  trying  to  de 
velop  the  inventions  of  certain  other  inventors  and  yet 
that  it  had  refused  to  try  mine  at  all,  although,  as  an  edi 
torial  in  the  New  York  Herald  expressed  it,  "its  orig 
inator,  Rear  Admiral  Fiske,  has  probably  invented  more 
successful  naval  and  military  inventions  than  any  other 
man  in  history. ' ' 


TRIUMPH  OF  THE  TOEPEDOPLANE       685 

This  expression  in  the  Herald  seems  at  first  glance  to 
be  exaggerated,  but  I  am  under  the  impression  that  it  is 
correct.  This  is  not  because  I  have  made  so  many  suc 
cessful  naval  and  military  inventions,  but  because  other 
men  have  made  so  few.  I  am  quite  familiar  with  the 
history  of  weapons,  and  I  do  not  know  of  any  other  man 
who  has  invented  so  many  important  weapons  as  I  have. 
When  one  considers  what  a  tremendously  important  part 
weapons  have  played  in  the  long  conflict  between  civiliza 
tion  and  barbarism,  the  sterility  of  invention  in  the  mat 
ter  of  weapons  is  a  fruitful  source  of  wonderment.  This 
remark  is  especially  true  in  regard  to  inventions  that 
made  really  long  steps  beyond  previous  inventions;  for 
most  inventions  have  merely  followed  a  very  gradual  and 
slow  course  of  improvement  over  existing  methods  and 
apparatus.  The  introduction  into  Europe  of  the  tube, 
containing  gunpowder  and  a  ball,  so  arranged  that  the 
gunpowder  could  be  ignited  and  made  to  project  the  ball, 
was  a  long  step  and  not  a  short  one ;  but  since  that  time 
I  do  not  know  of  any  military  or  naval  invention  which 
has  made  a  very  long  step  unless  it  shall  be  found 
that  the  torpedoplane  has  done  so.  It  may  be  found 
that  the  invention  of  the  torpedoplane  was  the  longest 
single  step  made  in  warfare  since  the  invention  of  the 
gun.  The  combination  of  the  most  powerful  weapon 
with  the  speediest  means  of  transportation  is  an  agency 
of  war  whose  importance  a  prophet  is  not  needed  to 
discern. 

I  realize  that  I  am  a  biassed  witness  in  this  case,  and 
that  I  am  exposing  myself  to  ridicule  by  this  remark. 
But  possibly  an  inventor  will  be  leniently  dealt  with,  even 
if  he  does  exaggerate  the  importance  of  his  own  inven 
tion  ;  and  if  so,  I  respectfully  request  lenient  treatment. 
If  this  request  be  granted,  I  should  like  to  add  that  if  the 
torpedoplane  makes  that  change  in  naval  warfare  which 
many  naval  officers  besides  myself  predict,  it  will  tend  to 
increase  enormously  the  power  of  the  United  States  rela 
tively  to  other  countries.  The  reason  is  that  no  other 


686     FEOM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  EEAE-ADMIEAL 

nation  possesses  so  great  inventive  genius,  and  holds 
within  its  own  territory  such  a  concentration  of  mechan 
ical  and  industrial  resources  and  ability,  such  enormous 
forests  of  wood  suitable  for  aeroplanes,  and  so  many  har 
bors  adaptable  as  bases  of  departure  and  return  for  air 
craft  of  all  kinds.  I  have  long  predicted  that  the  grand 
future  of  aeronautics  is  not  to  be  on  the  land,  but  on  the 
sea.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  three  quarters  of  the 
surface  of  the  earth  is  covered  by  the  sea;  and  that,  in 
order  to  traverse  the  great  distances  required  in  flying 
over  water  from  one  country  to  another,  much  more 
powerful  aeroplanes  will  be  required  than  for  flying  over 
the  comparatively  small  stretches  of  the  land. 

Surely  a  new  era  can  be  made  to  dawn  for  the  United 
States  of  America.  The  pre-eminent  inventive  genius 
of  its  people,  their  wealth  and  their  initiative,  enable 
them  (if  they  will)  to  invent,  to  produce  and  to  employ 
better  air-craft  and  more  air-craft  than  any  other  people 
can,  and  thereby  to  exercise  an  influence  more  wide 
spread  and  profound  than  any  other  nation  has  ever  ex 
ercised  in  history. 

Says  my  diary — 

"July  19.  Returned  from  week  at  Newport.  Met  many 
officers  of  all  grades.  Sims  and  Asst.  Sec.  Roosevelt  admired 
for  their  ability  and  still  more  for  their  honorableness. 

''July  20.  ...  The  Electrical  Experimenter  for  August  has 
a  long  and  fully  illustrated  account  and  description  of  the 
torpedoplane  and  also  of  the  'Fiske  Submarine  Spotter,'  that 
is  of  my  patent  for  detecting  submarines  by  microphones  that 
are  suspended  under  boats  that  are  towed  by  dirigibles,  each 
microphone  being  in  telephone  circuit  with  an  observer  in  the 
dirigible.  This  plan  was  used  but  in  a  modified  and  compara 
tively  inefficient  form  in  the  North  Sea  during  the  war.  Re 
ceived  letter  from  President  Aero  Club  notifying  me  that  I  had 
been  awarded  Gold  Medal  for  invention  of  torpedoplane." 

The  letter  of  presentation  read  as  follows : 


TRIUMPH  OF  THE  TORPEDOPLANE       687 

THE  AERO  CLUB  OF  AMERICA, 

297  MADISON  AVENUE, 
NEW  YORK,  August  1st,  1919. 

Rear  Admiral  B.  A.  Fiske, 
128  West  59th  Street, 

New  York. 
MY  DEAR  ADMIRAL  FISKE: 

In  accordance  with  the  decision  of  the  Board  of  Governors, 
and  in  obedience  to  a  Resolution  passed  by  its  executive  com 
mittee  on  July  9th,  on  behalf  of  the  Club,  I  take  great  pleasure 
in  sending  you  the  Gold  Medal  of  the  Aero  Club  of  America,  in 
recognition  of  your  invention  of  the  Torpedoplane.  This  is  the 
highest  honor  we  can  confer,  and  we  esteem  it  a  privilege  to 
confer  it  on  so  worthy  a  recipient  and  for  so  brilliant  an  achieve 
ment. 

The  Aero  Club  congratulates  you  on  having  made  this  val 
uable  invention.  It  laments  the  fact,  however,  that  you  were  not 
given  any  opportunity  to  develop  it  yourself,  though  other  in 
ventors  of  far  less  fame,  and  without  any  of  your  expert  knowledge 
of  naval  requirements,  were  assisted  during  the  war  with  large 
sums  of  money  by  the  Navy  Department ;  and  it  doubly  laments 
the  fact  that  our  Navy  Department  officially  rejected  it,  and 
permitted  Great  Britain  and  Germany  to  secure  the  entire  credit 
for  putting  it  into  practice. 

The  Aero  Club  realizes  also  that  your  carefully  prepared 
plans  to  build  up  Naval  Aeronautics  made  while  you  were  Aid 
for  Operations  in  1913,  1914  and  1915,  were  not  carried  out 
after  you  resigned  your  position,  and  that  a  great  national  op 
portunity  was  thereby  lost.  It  was  deplorable  that  the  Admin 
istration  of  the  Navy  Department  lacked  your  vision.  The  con 
sequences  were  injurious  and  far  reaching. 

Had  the  urgent  recommendations  been  followed  which  you 
made  officially  to  Congress  March  24  and  26,  1916,  and  which 
are  a  matter  of  record,  this  country  could  have  sent  flotillas 
of  dirigibles,  bombing  aeroplanes  and  torpedoplanes  to  Europe 
as  soon  as  we  entered  the  war ;  and  the  measures  to  destroy  the 
naval  forces  and  naval  bases  at  Kiel  and  Wilhelmshaven  which 
you  urged  in  the  summer  of  1917,  and  which  were  in  actual 
course  of  preparation  in  the  Autumn  of  1918,  when  the  Armis 
tice  was  signed,  could  have  been  carried  out  shortly  after  we 
entered  the  war.  The  result  would  undoubtedly  have  been  an 


688     FROM  MIDSHIPMAN  TO  REAR-ADMIRAL 

earlier  ending  of  the  war,  much  saving  of  life,  suffering  and 
money,  and  a  wonderful  enhancing  of  the  glory  of  the  United 
States. 

Sincerely  yours, 

ALAN  R.  HAWLEY, 

President. 


The  British  navy  had  succeeded,  by  the  spring  of  1918,  in 
bringing  the  torpedoplane  to  a  thoroughly  practical  stage,  both 
in  construction  and  in  operation;  they  have  now  developed  suc 
cessful  torpedo  target-practice,  not  only  with  single  torpedo- 
planes,  but  with  squadrons  of  them;  and,  both  in  construction 
and  in  operation,  they  have  followed  with  extraordinary  close 
ness  the  description  and.illustrations  embodied  in  my  application 
for  patent,  that  was  published  when  the  patent  was  granted,  in 
July,  1912. 

The  British  have  constructed  airplane  carriers,  two  of  which 
go  at  a  very  high  speed,  and  are  to  carry  twenty  torpedoplanes 
each. 

By  doing  these  things,  the  British  navy  has  already  achieved 
a  superiority  over  the  American  navy  in  the  air  greater  than  the 
superiority  it  holds  on  the  water,  and  has  gained  a  start  that  it 
will  probably  be  impossible  for  us  to  overcome. 

As  the  inventor  of  the  torpedoplane,  and  as  an  American 
officer,  I  may  perhaps  be  pardoned  if  I  express  my  chagrin  that 
a  condition  so  wholly  deplorable  and  so  easily  preventable  should 
have  been  permitted  to  come  to  pass. 


THE    END 


INDEX 


Administrative  Plan,  540,  579,  583, 

597 

Aero  Club  of  America,  594,  632 
"Aeronautics  in  War,"  642 
Aeroplane  Flight,  509 
Aguinaldo,  271 
Aid  for  Education,  548 
Aid  for  Operations,  526 
"Alfonso  the  Last,"  258 
Allderdice,  Winslow,  28,  91 
Alumni  Association  of  Speech,  489, 

590 
American  Defense  Society,  615,  618, 

634 

Arlington,  502 

Army  and  Navy  Joint  Board,  538 
Army  and  Navy  Journal,  612 
Artificial  Horizon,  50 


B 


Badger,  C.  J.,  523,  542,  562,  598 

Balabac,  324 

Barker,  A.  S.,  345 

Barr    and    Stroud    Range    Finder, 

152,  359,  407 
Barry,  David,  583 
Barton,  E.  M.,  231 
Bates,  General,  336 
Battle  of  Manila,  241  et  seq. 
Bausch  and  Lomb  Company,  575 
Bay  View  Hotel,  491 
Beauregard,  Augustin,  426 
Bell,  Franklin,  279 
Benham,  Admiral,  187 
Benjamin,  Park,   71,  212,   376,  553, 

652 
Benson,    W.    S.,    584    et    seq.,    599, 

618-621,  626 
Bigelow,  Poultney,  620 
Bliss  Company,  329 
Board  for  Testing  Inventions,  580 
Boat  Detaching  Apparatus,  40,  61 
Borneo,   330   et  seq. 
Boston  Transcript,  630 
Bowyer,  J.  M.,  491 
Bradford,  Royal  B.,  84,  380 
Brashear,  J.  A.,  482 
Breech-loading  Musket,  69 
Bristol,  Mark,  538,  551 
Britten,  Fred  A.,  596,  601 


689 


Browning  Gun,  116 
Brownson,  W.  H.,  189,  407 
Brumby,  Thomas,  58,  281 
Bryan,  W.  J.,  207,  535 
Buenos  Aires,  470 
Bunce,  F.  M.,  341 
Bureau  of  Ordnance,  78 
Burgess,  W.  Starling,  507 


Cabot,  Godfrey  L.,  656  et  seq. 

Canet,  Gustave,  138 

Cap  Brun,  157 

Cape  Melville,  324 

Cape  Pillar,  465 

Caproni,  653 

Captain's  Cruise,  417 

Capture  of  Manila  City,  275 

Castilla,  247 

Century  Company,  681 

Chadwick,  F.  E.,  128,  362 

Chandler,  Secretary,  80 

Chester,  Colby,  510 

Chicago  Tribune,  596 

Chichester,  Sir  Edward,  271 

Chief  of  Naval  Operations,  567  et 
seq.,  599 

Christina,  247 

"Civilian  Electrician  in  Modern 
War,"  239 

Clarke,  George  R.,  548 

Cleveland,  President,   190 

Coburn,  Constructor,  672 

Coe,  Dr.  H.  C.,  622,  675 

Coffin,  H.  E.,  647 

Cole,  W7.  C.,  353 

Collier's,  596,  653 

Commercial  Club  of  Chicago,  596 

Commodore  W.  and  Commodore  M., 
122 

"Compromiseless  Ships,"  375 

Conference  Committee  on  Prepared 
ness,  624 

Cooper,  Ensign,  387 

Coquimbo,  432 

Costa  Rica,  440 

Gotten,  Lieutenant  Commander,  574 

Couden,  A.  R.,  41 

"Courage  and  Prudence,"  412 

Course  Indicator,  413 

Cramp's  Shipyard,  363 

Cronan,  W.  P\,  552,  554  et  seq.,  567 


690 


INDEX 


distance,     Admiral     Sir    Reginald, 

645 

Curtiss,  Glenn  H.,  661 
Cuxhaven,  628 


I) 


Daniels,  Secretary,  530  et  seq. 
Davis,  C.  H.,  533 

"Defending  America  with   Torpedo- 
planes,"  644 
Dentist,  Painless,  183 
Depth  Bomb,  591 
Dewa,  Admiral,  574 
Dewey,  George,  240,  302,  350,  475 
Dirigible  and  Microphone,  664 
Division  of  Aeronautics,  652 
Dora,  E.  J.,  9 

Dunne,  F.  P.    ("Mr.  Dooley"),  597 
Dutton,  E.  P.,  625 
Dynamite  Gun,  110 


E 


Eckert,  General,  104 

Electrical  Exhibition,  89  et  seq. 

Electrical  Society,  638 

Electrical  Ammunition  Hoist,  117 
et  seq. 

Electric  Engine  Telegraph,  209  et 
seq. 

Electric  Gun  Training,  118 

"Electricity  and  Electrical  Engi 
neering,"  76 

"Electricity  in  Naval  Life,"  215 

"Electricity  in   Warfare,"   129 

Electric  Locomotive  Headlight,  91 

Electric  Log,  48,  61 

Electric  Printing  Telegraph,   103 

Electric  Railway,  92 

Electric  Range  Finder,  110,  119, 
156,  359 

Electric  Range  Indicator,   158 

Electric  Training  Gear,   198 

Elevations  Indicator,   153,   187 

Elliott  Bros.,   134  et  seq.,   151 

Engineering,  376 

Evans,  Robley  D.,  161 

"Explosion  of  Mr.  John  Ashburton," 
234 


Farmer,  M.  G.,  40 
Fermier,  285,  289 
Filipino  War,  293  et  seq. 
Fillebrown,  Captain,  52 
Finley,  John,  521 
First  Division,  517 
First     Telephone     Installation      on 
Board  Ship,  131  et  seq. 


Fiske's  Letter  to  Senate,  613 
Fiske,  Mrs.,  290,  294,  582 
Fletcher,   F.   F.,  478,   542,  562 
Flying-Fish  Torpedo,  553 
Folger,  W.  F.,  128 
Foote,  Commodore,  541 
Fort  Hamilton,  214,  345 
Fort  San  Antonio,  278 


Q 


Gardner,  A.  P.,  552,  562,  607 

Garrison,  Secretary,  598 

General  Board,  350,  476,  544,  491 

General  Electric  Company,  199 

General  Staff,  398 

"German  Torpedoplane  sinks  Brit 
ish  Ship,  644 

Gherardi,  Bancroft,   25,  47,  60,   184 

Gherardi,  Walter,  51 

Gill,  C.  C.,  493 

Gilmore,  James,  322 

Gleaves,  Albert,   170 

Gold  Modal  from  Aero  Club,  687 

Gold  Medal  from  Franklin  Insti 
tute,  185 

Gold  Medal  from  Naval  Institute, 
371 

Goodrich,  Caspar  F.,  115 

"Great  Illusion,"  538 

Gun  Director  System,  126 

Guy,  George  H.,  635 


II 


Hall,  Mrs.,  290,  298 

Hall,  R.  T.,  244 

Hammond,  Dr.  Graeme,  217,  617 

Hammond,  John  Hays,  231 

Harper,  Josephine,  51,  63 

Hawley,  Allan  R.,  608,  642,  688 

Hazing,   10 

Helm  Indicator,  209 

Hendrick,  Burton  J.,  620 

H.  M.  S.  Galatea,  523 

H.  M.  S.  Immortalite,  271 

Hobson,  Richmond  P.,  551,  564,  567 

Holmes,  Ralston,  429 

Holt,  Hamilton,  673 

Hood,   John,  585 

Horizometer,  410  et  seq.,   575,  581, 

620 
Howard,  Thomas  B.,  416,  477,  498, 

584 

Howe,  Ensign,  387 
Hughes,  C.  F.,  433 
Hughes,  E.  M.,  224,  244 
Hunsacker,  Midshipman,  403 
Hunt,  Secretary,  80 
Hurricane  at  Havana,  394 
Hutchinson,  Miller  Reese,  590-590 


INDEX 


691 


II   Terribile,   149 
Independent,  The,  653 
Institute  of  Social  Sciences,  550 
Invention    and    Experiment    Board, 
399 


Janasuki,  383 
Japanese  Embassy,  574 
Jeffers,  W.  N.,  39 
Jolo,  320 

K 

KaempfFert,  Waldemar,  488 

Kagayan  Sulu,  335 

Kalakaua,  23 

Kaufman,  Surgeon,  429 

Kelley,  J.  D.  J.,  645 

Key  West,  499,  513 

Kiel,  567 

Kilanea  Volcano,  28 

Knapp,  H.  S.,  545,  549,  567,  581 

Knight,  Austin,  422,  440,  532,  545, 

552 

Knox,  Dudley,  567,  575 
Knox,  P.  C.,  495,  501 


Labuan,  331  et  seq. 

Lamberton,  Captain,  262 

"Land  Battleship,"  488,  594,  623 

Lansing,  Robert,  551,  553,  579 

Leave  in  Europe,  133  et  seq. 

Leave  of  Absence,  73 

Leavitt,  Frank  M.,  339  et  seq. 

Le  Breton,  Lieutenant  Commander, 
609 

Le  Formidable,  140  et  seq. 

Letter  from  Aero  Club  presenting 
Gold  Medal,  687 

Letter  Recommending  Air  Attack 
on  Kiel,  648 

Letter  Recommending  Sending  Bat 
tle  Planes  to  Europe,  643 

Letter  to  Aero  Club  Recommending 
Battle  Planes,  633 

Letter  to  Secretary  Urging  Power 
ful  Torpedoplanes  (No.  1),  657 

Letter  to  Secretary  Urging  Power 
ful  Torpedoplanes  (No.  2),  673 

Letter  Urging  Air  Attack  on  Kiel 
(No.  1),  654 

Letter  Urging  Air  Attack  on  Kiel 
(No.  2),  665 

Lentze,  Eugene,  278 

Life,  598 


Lima,  439 

Lodge,  Henry  Cabot,  607,  615 

Luce,   S.   B.,    106   et   seq.,   220,   351, 

370,  535,  537 
Lumsden,  Surgeon,  391 


M 


Machine  gun,  40 

Madison,   Zachariah,  477,  520,  552, 

554 

Magellan,  Strait  of,  165 
Mahan,  A.  T.,  106  et  seq.,  363,  483, 

535,  560 
Marriage,  68 
Marshall,  Edward  521 
Marshall,  Vice-President,  615 
Masson,  T.  L.,  656 
"Mastery  of  the  World,"  590 
Maxwell,  W.  J.,  525 
McCalla,  B.  H.,  52  et  seq.,  76 
McCommon,   Ensign,   387 
McLean,  Ridley,  427 
"Mean  Point  of  Impact,"  515 
Megaphone,  86 
Memorial  Parade,  502 
Method   of   Pointing   Guns   at   Sea, 

125 

Meyer,  Secretary,  458,  526,  530 
Michelson,  A.  A.,  15,  535 
"Militarism  vs.  Politics,"  374 
"Modern     Electrician     in     Time    of 

War,"  130 

Monitor  and  Merrimac,  511 
Monsoon,  307  et  seq. 
Montgomery,   Ensign,  250 
Moore,  John  Bassett,  553 
Morgenthau,  Henry,  204 
Moros,  320 
Morrell,  Henry,  407 
Morton,  J.  P.,  316 
Mustin,  Midshipman,  341 


X 


Nanshan,  240 

National  Security  League,  630 

Naval  Academy,  8 

Naval  Advisory  Board,  79 

"Naval  Battle  of  the  Future,"  129 

Naval  Consulting  Board,  588 

"Naval  Defence,"  593 

Naval  Gun  Foundry  Board,  79 

Naval  Institute,  215,  371,  412,  425, 

491,  521,  534,  599 
"Naval  Policy,"  593 
"Naval  Power,"  483 
"Naval  Preparedness,"  593 
"Naval  Principles,"  593 
"Naval  Profession,"  398,  460 
"Naval  Strategy,"  599 


692 


INDEX 


Naval  Telescope  Sight,  127 

Naval  War  College,  220 

Navy  League,  607 

Newberry,  Secretary,  457 

Night  signalling,  55 

North  American  Review,  593,  596 

Northcliffe,  Lord,  478,  657 

Noyes,  Leigh,  552 

N.  Y.  American,  606 

N.  Y.  Herald,  602,  606 

N.  Y.  Navy  Yard,  46 

N.  Y.  Sun,  603 

N.  Y.  Times,  606,  616 

N.  Y.  Tribune,  606 

N.  Y.  World,  603,  616 


0 


O'Lachlan,  Callan,  574 
O'Neill,  Charles,  346,  361 
Osterhaus,  Hugo,  494,  523,  602 
Outbreak  of  War,  545 


Padgett,  Lemuel,  540 

Page,  G.  W.,  507 

Paranaque,  312  et  seq. 

Peek,  332 

Pelletan,  Camille,  142 

Periscope,  412 

Peters,  George  H.,  16,  38,  377 

Pirate  Ship,  Bradley  A.  Fiske, 
404 

Plotting  Room,  412 

Plotting  System,  482 

Politics  vs.  Militarism,  374 

Pollen,  A.  H.,  652 

Popular  Science  Monthly,  92,  488 

Potter,  W.  P.,  458 

Potts,  T.  M.,  479,  502,  531 

"Prepare  or  Perish,"  630 

President's  Letter  to  American  De 
fense  Society,  617 

Pribyloff  Islands,  175 

Prince  Henry,  270,  272 

Prism  System  of  Target  Practice, 
520 

Prize  Essay,  371 

"Proof  of  the  Preparedness  of  the 
Navy,"  562 

Puerto  Militar,  470 

Punta  Arenas,  467 


R 


Ramsay,  Frank,  163,  185,  198,  216, 

220 
Range  and  Position  Finder,  131, 

214 
Reid,  Whitelaw,  523 


Rejection    of    Torpedoplane,    660    ct 

seq. 
Relative  Importance  of  "Turret  and 

Telescope  Sight,"  511 
Reports  on   Telescope   Sight,   Range 

Finder,   and    Range    Indicators, 

192  et  seq. 
Reprimand,  594 
Republican  Club,  629 
Rescue  at  Sea,  385  et  seq. 
Resignation   as  Aid  for  Operations, 

581 

Reuterdahl,  Henry,  607 
Roberts,  Congressman,  565 
Roberts,  Lord,  546 
Robeson,  Secretary,  80 
Rodgers,  John  A.,  377 
Rodgers,  T.  S.,  365 
Roosevelt,  Assistant  Secretary,  540, 

563,  584,  682 
Roosevelt,  Theodore,   347,   384,   524, 

597,  615,  624,  672 
Root,  Elihu,  630 
Russell,  Frank,  493,  514 
Russell,  W.  W.,  494 


S 


Saegmuller,  George  N.,  376,  575 

Safety  League,  562 

Sampson,  W.  T.,  184,  198,  362 

Sandakan,  330 

San  Domingo,  494 

Sandy  Point,  467 

Satterlee,  Herbert  L.,  635 

Schley,  165  et  seq. 

Schroeder,  Seton,  113-115 

Scott,  Sir  Percy,   126,  352,  411,  436 

Seal  Islands,  175 

"Sea  Power  and  Freedom,"  674 

Sebree,  Uriel,  417  et  seq. 

Secretary's  Letter  to  Senate,  610 

Seibels,  George,  224,  236,  244 

Semaphore,    218    et    seq.,    341,    351, 

367 

Sherman,  W.  T.,  362 
Sherrill,  Charles,  471 
Shoemaker,  Captain,  543,  545 
Shufeldt,  R.  W.,  45 
Sims,    W.    S.,    347,    352,    355,    411, 

675 

Smith,  James  T.,  463 
Smith,  Roy,  552,  555 
Smith,  Lieut.,  408 
Snyder,  Carl,  653 
Soienoid  Whistle,  341 
Sounding  Machine,  219,  225 
Special  Aid  Society,   639 
Sperry,  Charles  S..  325,  331 
Sperry,  Elmer  E.,  444,  520 
Sprague,  F.  J.,  535 


INDEX 


693 


Standley,  W.  H.,  222 

Stanworth,  Lieutenant  Commander, 

387 

Stadimeter,  208 
Staunton,  Sidney  A.,  455 
Stickney,  Joseph,  262 
Stimson,  Secretary,  630 
Stirling,  Yates,  402  et  seq. 
Stokes-Fiske,  80 
Strategic  War   Problems  for   Fleet, 

587 

Strauss,  Joseph,  347,  591 
Sultana  of  Sulu,  329 
Sultan  of  Sulu,  330 
Sulu,  320,  327 
Swift  Board,  560 
Swift,  William,  458 
Swinburne,  \V.  T.,  408 
Sypher,  Commander,  662 


Taft,  President,  525,  592 

Takeuchi,  Captain,  574 

Tanks,  594 

Tappan,  Benjamin,  278 

Taylor,    H.    C.,    65,    220,    350,    370, 
371,  535 

Taylor,  David,  575,  591 

Tactical    Drills    and    Fleet    Tactics, 
350 

Telescope  mount,  344 

Telescope  sight,  127,  213 
first  trial,  171 
second  trial,  177 

Tesla,  Nikola,  231 

Testimony  before  House  Naval  Com 
mittee,  565,  599 

Testimony     before     Senate     Naval 
Committee,  413 

Thayer,  H.  B.,  204,  230,  341,  535 

"The  Invention  and  Development  of 
the  Naval  Telescope  Sight,"  436 

"The  Naval  Profession,"  460 

"The     Navy     as     a     Fighting     Ma 
chine,"  624 

Third  division,  507 

Thompson,  Col.  R.  M.,  607 

Tillman,  Senator,  615 

"To    Adjust    Range    Finders    before 
Battle,"  427 

Toboga  Bill,  464 

Torpedoplane,  505  et  seq. 

Torpedoplaning   Turkish   Transport, 
598 

Torpedo,  Superheated,  340 

Torpedo  Turbine  Driven,  340 

Trials  of  Telescope  Sight,  191  et  seq. 

Triumph  of  the  Torpedoplane,  677 

Tsushima,  Battle  of,  512 


Turret   Range   Finder,   358   et  seq., 

400,  406  et  seq.,  481 
Typewriter,  38 


U 


Unalga  Pass,   182 

"Uncle   Sam   and  Aunt   Elizabeth," 

630 

United  States  Declares  War,  632 
Unpreparedness  Letter,   555 
Unpreparedness    of    the    Navy,    546 

et  seq. 

U.  S.  Revenue  Cutter  McCullogh 
U.  S.  S.  Alabama,  342 

Baltimore,   122,  240 

Boston,  288 

Charleston,  278 

Concord,  240 

Colorado,  47 

Georgia,  507 

Illinois,  407 

Kearsarge,  342 

Maine,  240,  361 

Massachusetts,  344 

Mayflower,  384 

Minnesota,  68 

Monadnock,  293  et  seq. 

Monterey,  278 

Olympia,  240,  293 

Powhatan,  51 

Petrel,  203,  223,  240 

Plymouth,  42 

Raleigh,  240 

Scorpion,  598 

South  Dakota,  458 

Tennessee,  417  et  seq. 

Vesuvius,  111 

Yorktotcn,  317 


Van  Nostrand,  Charles  B.,  376 
Veracity,   Question  of,  616 
Vreeland,  Charles,  491,  526 

W 

Wainwright,  Richard,  458,  475,  491, 

542,  602 

Walker,  John  G.,  84 
War  College,  533,  544 
Ward,  Aaron,  458 
\Vard,  Leonard,  199 
W7ar  Game,  584 
War  Plans,  574  et  seq. 
"War's    Most    Important    Hint    to 

Us,"  631 
War  Staff,  553 
Washington  Post,  596 
Watson,  J.  C.,  337,  192  et  seq. 


\ 


694  INDEX 

Weaver,  General,  541  Wireless  Experiments,  99 

Weeks,  Senator,  541  WTood,  E.  P.,  241  et  seq.,  275  et  seq. 

Western  Electric  Company,  341  Wood  Henry  A.  Wise,  642 

Whitney,   Secretary,   87  Woodhouse,  Henry,  627,  642,  682 

Wiley,  Captain,  621  Wood,  Leonard,  541,  662 

Williams,  Dion,  489  Wood,  Spencer,  519 

Williams,  G.  W.,  400  World's  Work,  620,  629 
Winslow,  Cameron,  583 


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